Glee and Prejudice
by Gemelli22
Summary: My take on the St. Berry stage door challenge, loosely based on one of my favorite books Pride and Prejudice.
1. Chapter 1

**This is my story for the stage door challenge. It's AU, multi-chaptered, and very loosely based on one of my favorite books Pride and Prejudice. I want to thank Original Groffete for taking the time to beta this chapter!**

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Rachel Berry had fallen in love once more. She did not think it was possible, but here she was, head over heels again. She had only felt that way once before, when she first arrived in New York, but it was official: Rachel had fallen in love with London, and it was love at first sight.

Starring on The West End wasn't exactly one of her immediate dreams: it was more a future goal, something she wanted to achieve once she had made it in Broadway first. But after getting a call back following an audition for a revival of "Chicago" in the West End, she knew it was an opportunity she would not let float past her nose, as Julie Andrews had so graciously quoted once. She had worked hard, applied herself and had just obtained her BFA from Tisch, and she was ready to recognize and grab a good opportunity, even if it didn't fit into her plans.

There she was, in London, living in a lovely flat the production company had rented for her and two more actors from the show in Notting Hill, and she couldn't be happier. She had two months of arduous rehearsals before the show started, but she was looking forward to every second of it, she had never felt so alive before. And she was eager to go through the stage door of a theater as the star of a musical for the first time instead of waiting around it as a fan.

Rachel was used to hanging around stage doors, and had visited quite a few in her twenty two years. She remembered going to New York every summer with her dads to watch plays and musicals, she would go immediately afterwards to the stage door to patiently wait for the actors to come out. She always had a list of questions for the actors, like 'What is it like to be a stage actor?" and "How do you keep it fresh?". She would later write their answers and her impressions in her journal, and after hitting every stage door in Broadway while at Tisch, her journal was loaded with valuable information. She took great care of her journal, it was her bible and it was always with her.

But the first time Rachel walked into the stage-entrance door of the Wyndham's Theater she was absolutely delighted. It was crisp Tuesday morning, perhaps too cold for late April. She got there early, telling her flatmates that she needed to take care of something before getting to the theater. The stage door was painted blue, and she took a few seconds to relish the feeling of that particular moment, of going through a stage door for the first time. Then she set out to know the stage door keeper, a pleasant middle aged woman who didn't seem to mind the deluge of questions Rachel asked, and answered every last question affably. Rachel was surprised at how nice and cordial everyone had been since she arrived in London: she was expecting a bunch of arrogant, stuck-up people, but only three days had sufficed to prove her preconceptions wrong. In fact, everyone involved in her show was infinitely nicer than the cast and crew of her last performance at the university before graduating.

Once inside, she was amazed by the grandeur of the theater as she saw it from the stage, with its Louis XVI interior and majestic balconies. She could not believe that in just a few months she would be singing and dancing from that same stage to a full house, since tickets to the first two months of "Chicago" were already sold out. She stood alone on the stage, savoring the moment, knowing that her dreams were coming true: she had made it.

* * *

Jesse St James had made it. He had starred as Roger in the very successful revival of "Rent" on Broadway for two consecutive years, and had moved to London when the show opened in the West End, where it also had been a success for over a year. Even though Jesse wanted to take a break after leaving the New York production, his agent convinced him to do the London show arguing that what he needed was a change of scenery, and Jesse had to agree since he wasn't ready yet to let go of Roger.

Only three more actors had made the leap from New York to London with him: his best friends Sam Evans and Tina Cohen-Chang, who played Mark and Mimi, and were his current flatmates; and Finn Hudson, who played the role of Benny. Jesse was thankful that Finn had declined his friends' offer to share the place they had rented, it was bad enough that he had to see him on a daily basis at work, they just didn't get along, and he was not about to share the great place he had found with him. He had scouted several places all over the city before finding the perfect townhouse with a rather large private communal garden in the heart of Notting Hill. Even when the production company usually paid the lease, it was well over the acceptable limits, and Jesse had to pay for the difference by himself. He never told his friends about it, since he had the means to pay for it and did not want to make his friends uncomfortable.

Despite the fact that Jesse was only 24, he wasn't into partying like his friends, who made almost daily stopovers at a pub near the Noel Coward Theater after the show. They had almost nailed it down to a routine: after the show most of the actors would meet their fans at the stage door for fifteen minutes or so, and then they left for the pub, where some of the fans followed them. But Jesse always stayed behind at the stage door, making sure to attend to most of the fans that gathered there, signing autographs and posing patiently for pictures with them. To Jesse, staying by the stage door once the show had ended had become a ritual that was much more satisfying to him than downing a pint of beer at the pub, and to his grateful fans he was much more than a talented actor and singer, he was a gentleman.

Jesse always got to the theater early, he liked having time to warm up his vocal cords in the empty theater before the cast and crew arrived, and there was something about having the whole theater to himself for a while that he took great pleasure in. It was still morning and he was walking to his stage door when he saw them for the first time, two beautiful girls, a blonde and a brunette were hanging in the alley next to it. Even though he was used to greeting fans after the show and not before, he was willing to make an exception. He smiled as he made his way there only to realize that the girls weren't exactly waiting for him. They smiled back at him and nodded but carried on with their conversation with one another, not paying attention to where he was going.

Jesse saw the same girls again the next day, but this time he noticed that they were closer to the stage door of the Wyndham, which was opposite his stage door in the same alley. Once more he nodded as he went into his theater, and this time the blonde girl waved at him, while the brunette was apparently busy texting on her phone. He remembered that "Chicago" was set to open at the Wyndham soon, and he needed to find a way to see it, since they were probably on the same nights as "Rent".

It wasn't until the day that Sam was bored enough to actually arrive early at the theater with him, that Jesse had the chance to actually meet the blonde and the brunette he was getting used to seeing everyday across his stage door. Sam was a ladies' man, and he immediately introduced himself and Jesse to the girls. Quinn Fabray and Rachel Berry were the names of the mysterious girls, they were also Americans and were the rookie actors set to star in "Chicago". Jesse exchanged a few pleasantries with them and excused himself in order to start his warm up routine, leaving Sam to somehow find his way into one of the girls' pants; he knew his friend and could see that he was interested in more than having a simple chit-chat with them.

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Rachel was surprised to actually meet Jesse St James. She knew him from the New York show, she had been to the theater stage door but she didn't have a chance to talk to him much or ask him any questions, since the mob of adoring fangirls was just too big. Rachel thought Jesse St James was a brilliant actor and singer, she herself had been hypnotized by his amazing performance, but after seeing him every day by her stage door and having him barely acknowledge their presence, she thought he was arrogant and conceited, and suspected that he was probably not worth knowing on a personal level.

Her suspicions had been proven correct on the day she met him: he barely talked to them before leaving, confirming that he was in fact a pretentious snob. His friend Sam though, was completely different; he seemed genuinely interested in their show and even invited them to a pub after his show. They happily accepted, Rachel had barely gone out since she arrived in London because of their demanding rehearsing schedule, and she needed to unwind a little and maybe meet some new friends along the way. She was simply looking forward to a fun night with her peers, and she never imagined what she was in for.

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Please review to let me know if you want more! :)


	2. Chapter 2

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Thank you so much for all your reviews and alerts, I think I'm becoming addicted to those "Review Alert" e-mails! And thanks again to Original Groffette for beta-ing(?) this chapter on such short notice! Just a reminder, this is loosely based on P&P, so not all the characters are here. But yes, Finn IS Wickham, and Rachel will meet him soon!

And I'm in love with Blaine now, he's so cute! At least some eye candy til Groff comes back!

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**Chapter 2**

For the first time in a long time, Jesse St James didn't feel like staying with his fans by the stage door. He had a bit of a headache and he just wanted to go straight home after the show. But on that specific night, Sam kept pestering him about going to the pub with the new girls they had just met. Going to the pub was the last thing on Jesse's mind, but Sam was his best friend and they rarely went out, and taking into consideration that Tina was skipping the pub that night to go on a date, he reluctantly agreed to go. He had to make an effort that night to appear cordial and civil with his fans, and he was planning on doing the same at the pub and then leave as early as he could.

Sam stayed with Jesse by the stage door until he saw the girls emerge from the opposite door, and left to talk to them while Jesse finished with the fans. He glanced every once in a while and could see that the girls were laughing, as if Sam was the funniest guy in the world. Jesse made his way to them once he finished, and they all walked together to the nearby pub Sam and Tina visited almost every night.

Sam was clearly smitten with Quinn, so Jesse had no other option than to try and make small talk with the brunette (he had forgotten her name), and he clearly wasn't in the mood to do so.

They sat side by side at the bar for a while, and Rachel had never in her life felt so uncomfortable, but she was amused at the same time. She was uncomfortable because Jesse must have thought this was a double date and it was clear that he'd rather be somewhere else. He just sat beside her looking at his drink and stirring it like an alchemist who wished to make gold out of vodka. On the other hand, she was amused because it was obvious that every girl in the pub recognized Jesse, and it was quite entertaining to see them using different approaches in order to catch his eye, while he was completely oblivious to the fact that he was being hounded. So she was caught by surprise when he looked at her and spoke.

"So, how long have you girls been in London?"

"For over a month now. And you?"

"A year and a half."

"Oh…." Rachel said, trying to look interested.

After an uncomfortable silence, Jesse spoke again.

"And how do you like it here?"

"I love it here!" she replied sincerely. "I used to think New York was the best city in the world, but I'm changing my mind as we speak!"

Jesse noticed her smile for the first time, and he had to smile back.

"It's a wonderful place to be, isn't it?"

"Most definitely."

Jesse lifted both eyebrows and nodded, right before he tried stifling a yawn.

"Will you excuse me? I need to use the ladies room," was all that she could say before escaping Jesse St James.

"Most definitely? I'm talking to this condescending jerk and all I can say is 'most definitely'?" Rachel was talking to her reflection in the mirror and she could not believe the redundant statement that had just left her mouth, he probably thought she was a dimwit… But then she immediately reconsidered her stance, she would not be intimidated by him or anyone, so she applied more lipstick , gave herself a big smile, and left.

But before she could make her way to bar area, she overheard Sam and Jesse talking.

"I can't believe they're coming, talk about rotten timing…"

"Sam, it's okay, your sister and her friend can stay with us, that's why we have a guest room!"

"Stepsister! Or better yet, stepbitch."

"You know she's not that terrible…"

"Jesse, we're talking about Santana here. I don't know what's wrong with your memory, but…"

"Of course I remember, as well as I remember her friend call her 'Satan'. Adorable nickname by the way. But she's your step-sister, and there's nothing you can do about it! Forget about that and go and have fun, blondie seems to like you! I need to go now…"

"Oh, please don't leave yet, we just got here!"

"You know I've been here for half an hour already…"

"Jesse, when was the last time that you talked to pretty girls that were not drooling because they were talking to you? Come on, stay a little longer… Don't you find any of the girls here attractive at all?"

"You're talking to the only attractive girl here, Sam…"

"But her friend is also attractive, and she's also very nice…"

Jesse interrupted his friend with a throaty laugh.

"Come on Sam, she's tolerable at best, but not attractive enough to tempt me or make me want to stay here any longer… The music is so loud here my head is about to explode! What was her name anyway?"

That was all Rachel needed to hear before walking past them and giving Jesse her best 1000 watt smile. She wouldn't waste a minute more of her time talking or even thinking about Sam's pretentious friend, but his words stung her nonetheless. But she wouldn't take it personally; after all, the poor guy was almost forced to talk to her. She was talking to Quinn when she saw Sam and Jesse approached them.

"It was very nice meeting you again, Rachel" he said while he shook her hand. Then he shook Quinn's hand and nodded. "Quinn."

"I hope you guys have a good night. I need to go now, the music is too loud and I have a headache…"

"Of course, the music is barely _tolerable_ here! Have a good night and take good care of that headache!" Rachel quipped gleefully, with a big Cheshire cat smile.

Jesse's arched his brow, nodded once more, and left. And as soon as he was out the door Rachel's big fake smile vanished.

"He's insufferable Quinn, please tell me you and Sam did not plan this as a double date…"

"Not at all! You were there when Sam invited us! But Sam is really fond of his friend, he can't be that bad, Rachel… Maybe he really had a headache!"

"Don't be so naïve Quinn… But don't worry, I don't even like him!"

Thankfully, some of the other actors of their play got there to save the night.

Rachel had never been happier to see them.

"Noah! Mercedes! God, I'm so glad you guys made it!" she said as she hugged both of them tightly. Mercedes gave Quinn a questioning look. Quinn responded by mouthing "not now".

"So girl, how ya doin? Are you having a good time?"

"You could say it has been tolerable…"

Her friend interrupted her.

"We just saw St James on his way out, did you see him?"

Quinn answered before Rachel had a chance to do so.

"Yes, he's Sam's friend. They are together in Rent over at the Coward. Sam , this is Noah Puckerman, he plays Billy Flynn, and this is Mercedes Jones, she plays Mama Morton. This is Sam Evans."

"Oh yeah, I knew I'd seen you somewhere, nice to meet you, man" Noah extended his hand. "You can call me Puck."

Rachel started to have a good time, and forgot about Jesse St James altogether.

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Jesse thought about Rachel's last comment before he left. Was it possible that she heard what he was telling Sam? She had somehow managed to pique his interest. Once he got home, he texted Sam.

**From: Jesse**

Rachel's full name

**From: Sam**

Rachel Barbra Berry, why?

**From: Jesse**

Never mind

Jesse tossed his phone to the side and opened his laptop. He Googled her name, and was impressed by the amount of results that he got. He chose a youtube video entitled "Nationals 2010".

To say that he was surprised when he saw her sing is an understatement. He never imagined that her small body would have such a powerful voice. She was singing "Cry me a River" and he wished the video had a better quality, she was fantastic. Suddenly, he regretted fleeing the pub, maybe she was more than barely tolerable after all…

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**You knew that reviews make me update sooner, didn't you?**


	3. Chapter 3

**I loved all of your reviews, and I'm trying to be very careful since I surely don't want to butcher this adaptation of P&P! Thanks again to my beta Original Groffete for accepting my chapters and reviewing them quickly at odd hours, I keep forgetting about the 5 hour time difference! This is not my favorite chapter but it was necessary in order to set everything up for future chapters! And believe me, I'm already working on Ch 4 and it's getting better! Have a nice weekend!**

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**Chapter 3**

The last thing Jesse St James was expecting to find on his doorstep was Santana Lopez.

It was 2:00 am, and Jesse couldn't sleep, so he was still watching videos of Rachel Berry on youtube when the doorbell rang. Thinking that maybe Sam or Tina had forgotten their keys, Jesse opened the door wearing only his boxer shorts.

Santana looked at him from head to toe and licked her lips as if he was a giant piece of cheesecake and she was starving for dessert.

"My, my, Jesse, you've gotten even more handsome than the last time I saw you…"

Her voice was seductive as she placed a kiss on his cheek. She then traced the length of his arm from shoulder to hand with her fingers.

"Look at you, you're so hot, Jesse! Have you being doing weights?"

Jesse gently removed her hands from him and moved to pick up the two enormous Louis Vuitton suitcases that were still by the front door and close the door behind her.

"Hello Santana, we weren't expecting you 'til Tuesday…."

"Yeah, but I was incredibly bored in Paris, so I decided to surprise my little brother."

"I thought you were coming here with your girlfriend."

"What are you talking about, St James? My girlfriend?"

"The blonde gal that is always hanging around with you."

"You mean Brittany?"

"Yeah, Brittany."

"Well, let me start by making it clear that she is indeed a girl and she is my friend, but she is NOT my girlfriend."

"Whatever, Santana. Sam's still out."

"Go to hell, Jesse. Where is my room?"

"Santana, the guest room where you and your girlfriend will be staying is not ready yet, the cleaning lady doesn't get here until tomorrow since we weren't expecting you today. I'm sorry to admit that I don't even know where the linen closet is in this house, so I can lend you one of my blankets and you can stay in the couch for tonight, if you don't mind."

"Seriously Jesse, of course I mind. As if I would sleep on a couch. Take the suitcases up to my room, I'll just take this small one. Tell Sam that I'll stay at the Mayfair tonight and that I expect my room to be ready for tomorrow."

She shouted her command as she stormed out of the house. The way she kept referring to the guest room as 'her room' gave Jesse a bad feeling, and he hoped that she didn't plan on staying for too long.

* * *

Even though it was late and they had to be back at the theater very early, Quinn and Rachel were sitting in the kitchen having tea after helping Mercedes, who had a little too much to drink, settle in her room. Ever since they met, talking late at night had become a tradition for them whenever something interesting happened to either of them.

Quinn Fabray and Rachel Berry met in their sophomore year at Tisch, while both were auditioning for the same college production of "West Side Story". Quinn had just transferred to NYU from USC, where she had been admitted with a full cheerleading scholarship. They hit it off immediately, since Quinn looked up to Rachel for advice on singing and performing, while Rachel turned to Quinn for help with her fashion issues. They decided to become roommates and had become the best of friends ever since, and used to talk for hours every night. Each considered the other as the sister they never had.

In one of those late night conversations, Quinn told Rachel that cheerleading wasn't her passion, and that she had only accepted the scholarship out of sheer pressure from her high school coach and her mom. Her mom was a big influence on her at the time, and Quinn would do anything to please her. She was the head cheerleader back then and she admitted with regret that she was not a good person: she was the most popular girl at school and she felt she had the right to be conceited and arrogant, thinking of everyone else as inferior to her. She did have a soft spot for performing, but when she auditioned and got the lead at a high school play, her mom, cheerleading coach and team had shunned her to the point where she had to quit the play in order to maintain her popularity: status meant everything to her back then.

But after going to college, she realized that she didn't want to stay in the cutthroat environment of college cheerleading, so she quit the squad after only one semester and started taking drama and music classes, which she loved so much that after finishing her freshman year she transferred to NYU with the financial help of her grandparents, since her mom would not even talk to her.

"He likes you so much, Quinn, it's obvious, how can you not see it?"

"You really think so? I don't know he's so nice to everyone…"

"Please, Quinn, of course he likes you! And he's nice to everyone because he is a good person, unlike his weird friend… _Barely tolerable_, who does he think he is, James Bond?"

"I'm sure he didn't mean to offend you and that he's just shy, Sam tells me that he is a really good friend! Maybe he's just that way because women throw themselves at him all the time, did you see those girls at the bar?"

"I did, it was insane! Don't these girls have any self-pride? But that does not excuse his behavior. You know, I remember reading an article about him on The Village Voice when he first appeared on "Rent", it said something to the effect of him being one of Broadway's most promising young star, and how hard working and disciplined he is, he was even in the show choir circuit like I was. Then I saw him as Roger and I was astounded by his talent, and even though he did not show up at the stage door that night, I wanted to be like him, I thought he was everything I wanted to be right until I met him. I guess too much fame got into his head and he forgot he was also a rookie actor once!

"I'm certain he did have a headache and that you'll even like him once you get to know him better."

"I do hope I get to know him better, but only because I would like to show him that two can play in his self-importance game!"

"Oh Rachel, let it go already!"

"You know what? Enough about him! I want to know everything that Sam told you, don't you dare leave out any details!"

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The next day the girls arrived at the theater early, and only got out at midday to pick up Rachel's vegan lunch, which was delivered by the stage door. Quinn and Mercedes went with her just to stretch outside and catch a few minutes of sun, since chances were it would be dark by the time they left the theater. The day was so nice, they all decided to have their lunches outside by the stage door.

Rachel noticed him a while later, when her eyes ventured to the opposite stage door. He was tall, had dark hair and was very handsome. Their eyes met and he smiled at her. Rachel blushed and smiled back. Who was this tall, mysterious guy?

He took her smile as an invitation and crossed the alley to where she was.

"Hello there, bon apetit! I'm in the musical over at the Coward-" He smiled at Rachel, who almost melted when she saw his cute lopsided smile up close. "My name is Finn Hudson."

"Nice to meet you, Finn. I'm Rachel, this is Mercedes and this is Quinn. We're in the revival of 'Chicago'".

"Really, what part are you playing? Wait, don't tell me, I know, you must play Velma, you definitely have the beauty and style that characterize Velma."

Rachel's cheeks turned crimson at his comment.

"Yes, I am," she giggled "Quinn plays Roxie and Mercedes Mama Morton. Who do you play?"

"I'm Benny. But tell me, when does your show start? I'd really love to see you in costume! Well, I didn't mean only you, I mean all of you, you know, the whole thing…"

Rachel giggled again, suddenly believing that maybe love at first sight did exist.

Neither saw Jesse, Sam and Tina walking over to where they were talking. Sam immediately went to Quinn, and when Finn saw them, he regarded his castmates coldly, just by their names. Then he excused himself and disappeared through his stage door.

Rachel could see that the Asian girl did not even look at him, and Jesse did so with disdain. She wondered what had happened between them.

Jesse interrupted her thoughts.

"Hello"

Quinn looked at her, pleading with her eyes for Rachel to be nice. Rachel instinctively held up her head.

"Jesse, hi. Hope you feel better."

"I do, thank you."

"This is our flatmate Tina, she's the famous Mimi."

Rachel smiled "So nice to meet you Tina. And this is Mercedes, also our flatmate..."

The stage door keeper interrupted them.

"Girls, the director is looking for you"

"We're coming!" shouted Mercedes.

Rachel held Tina's hand. "It was so nice meeting you! I hope to see you again soon."

When she looked up at Jesse he was smiling, a complete smile, and it was the first time that Rachel had actually seen his teeth. He had a beautiful smile. He held out his hand for Rachel, and she felt he held her hand longer than necessary while looking into her eyes, his gaze so intense that she had to look elsewhere. But it wasn't enough to make her budge and forget about the way he rebuffed her the night before, she would seize the opportunity to taunt him and his arrogant ways as soon as she could.

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"Come on Rachel, it's just to eat something, I promise we'll be home early! It's just that Sam's sister is here, and he doesn't like her much…"

"He does not like his own sister?"

"Stepsister. And apparently she's a snob. Don't make me beg and just say yes."

"Ok Quinn, but why do we have to go to the pub again, can't we just go to a restaurant or something?"

"Stop complaining, Rache, they also serve food. You can have a salad."

"Okay, I'll stop complaining, but you need to find out everything about Finn Hudson, especially if he has a girlfriend!" Rachel blushed just by remembering him and his boyish good looks and secretely wishing he would also be there.

"He's cute! I think he likes you and he seemed so nice, he was very interested in watching our show, you should invite him for dress rehearsals."

Rachel smiled at Quinn's suggestion. She had been working so hard lately that she forgot how good it felt to like somebody, to really like somebody…

* * *

Jesse knew how uncomfortable his friend would be going out by himself with his stepsister, so he accepted Sam's invitation to go out without hesitation. Deep down he was hoping to see Rachel again, he couldn't explain it but she interested him somehow. Maybe it was just the fact that it had been a long time since he met someone that wasn't immediately starstruck with him, and probably it was only the potential challenge that interested him. But when he saw her talking to Finn that afternoon, he felt something he had never felt before, he didn't know what it was, but it wasn't pleasant.

Rachel and Quinn got to the pub later than anticipated, since rehearsals had taken longer than usual that day. Rachel spotted Sam's blonde hair at a table, and Jesse was also there, she surely wasn't expecting him to be there. He was listening intently to a long haired girl and had a patronizing smirk on his face. But when Sam beckoned them, Jesse turned his head and made eye contact with Rachel, she saw the same genuine smile he had given her that afternoon for a second, right before the smirk returned. Soon enough, Rachel understood the reason for the fixed smirk on Jesse's face: it was Sam's sister. As soon as Quinn and Rachel arrived at the table, Santana looked at them from head to toe, scrutinizing everything from their hair to their shoes. Rachel had not felt that way since high school, and as she sat once again beside Jesse St James, she thought it was going to be a long night. However, upon seeing Jesse's countenance, she decided that she would not let either Jesse or Sam's wicked step-sister ruin her night. After all, if he was a good actor, she knew she was better than him.

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**If you are nice and review, I will update Ch 5 soon! ;)**


	4. Chapter 4

**Short chapter, sorry, but I'm already working on Chapter 5! Hope you like it!**

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Rachel's intention of taunting Jesse was not going according to plan. Right after Quinn and Rachel got to their booth, Sam stood up and let Quinn sit between him and Santana and Rachel had no other choice but to sit next to Jesse. Almost immediately, Jesse excused himself from the table to attend to a phone call, and Rachel wondered if he really had a phone call, or if her mere presence bothered him so much that he felt the need to leave. Telling herself that she didn't care, she smiled and introduced herself to Santana.

"My pleasure" said Santana. "Boy, you are short! Won't you look weird dancing next to Quinn?"

Rachel flashed her fake smile before answering her:

"I get to wear platforms"

"Honey, I don't think they make platforms that high…. Anyway, be careful, it would be a shame if you fell during your performance, which would be extremely embarrassing…"

Santana looked smug, and Rachel understood why Sam could not stand her. After ten minutes of listening to Santana interrogating Quinn about her life (Where are you from? Were you really a cheerleader? Aren't you a little on the heavy side to have been a cheerleader?), Rachel also excused herself and walked to the bar, hoping to find Puck or Mercedes or anyone she knew there, but Rachel found something much more interesting than her friends. The minute she got to the bar she felt a towering presence by her side: it was Finn Hudson, the handsome and mysterious guy she had met that afternoon.

He smiled at her and leaned to kiss her cheek.

"Well, hello Velma, what a surprise! I've never seen you around here before."

Rachel blushed, still awestricken by his bold move to kiss her cheek, which she enjoyed very much: she could still feel his warm lips on her skin.

"Hello Finn. This is only the second time I've been here, I'm with my friend Quinn, she is sitting over there" she said while pointing with her finger to the location of their booth, only to find that Jesse had come back and was looking at them. He quickly turned his head when their eyes met, and she looked back at Finn.

"So, you're with St James?"

"No, nooooo, I'm not. I mean, yes, we're sharing a booth, but no, I'm not WITH him…"

"Good, I guess that's good news" he said smiling.

"Why, don't you get along with him? After all, you're castmates."

"You probably noticed the way he doesn't even acknowledge my presence, but we've known each other for a long time now. Do you know him well?"

"No, I don't, and I really don't care to know him better. I just met him yesterday, and still I can tell that his air of superiority does not exactly lend itself to being anything more than a simple acquaintance. I think that his self-importance sort of creates an impenetrable shield around him, one that I'm not in the least interested in getting through."

Finn chuckled.

"Well, I can see that you already got the 'St James treatment'!"

Now Rachel was very curious, and she smiled coyly at him.

"What do you mean with the 'St James treatment'?"

"Well, let's say that Jesse surely has a knack… let me rephrase that, more than a knack, a talent for pushing people away from him" he said pensively "I told you that we've known each other for a really long time now. Our dads were college roommates, and they stayed quite close, so much that we lived just a few blocks from each other back in New York, and we were best friends until our last year of high school. We went to the same performance arts school, and Jesse slowly shut himself out from everyone, his competitive spirit was too great, and he could not bear the fact that most teachers favored me and not him. When I was cast as Tony over him in our school's production of 'West Side Story', jealousy blinded him, and by the end of senior year he wouldn't even talk to me, despite the special bond our dads shared. I think it was at that moment when his pride overtook him; he simply didn't accept that perhaps others were more talented than him. It was very hard for me, we were best friends and I loved him like a brother, but he just disregarded our friendship as if it meant nothing to him…."

Finn looked hurt and upset as he was recounting his sad story about Jesse, and Rachel was dumbfounded by his revelation.

"But how come you ended up together in 'Rent'?"

"Ahhh, life can be very funny sometimes! I read for the part of Roger, and was sure it was mine until I found out that it had been given to Jesse, who also auditioned for the same part with the advantage of dating the casting director's daughter…"

Rachel shook her head disbelievingly.

"This is outrageous! I knew that he was arrogant, but I never thought he could be so downright cruel and vindictive! To shun his best friend out of jealousy… He truly is insufferable!"

She looked at Jesse with disdain.

"What about your parents, are they still best friends?"

"They were the best of friends until Robert St James' untimely death in a car accident a few years ago. My dad occasionally talks to Jesse, he still cares for him deeply, being the only son of his best friend… But listen Rachel, let's not talk about him anymore, I want to know more about you."

Rachel was flattered beyond belief, but she knew that she had to go back to Quinn.

"I'd love to know more about you too, but I have to go back to my friend now, maybe some other time…"

"You can count on it. Maybe I'll get lucky and you'll invite me to a dress rehearsal before opening night!"

Rachel's smile grew wider at that last statement.

"Well, you can count on that!"

Finn leaned onto her and once more kissed her cheek.

"Hope to see you soon, Rachel Berry."

She practically floated on her way back to the table; she could not believe how lucky she had gotten. But her sense of weightlessness vanished as soon as she sat beside Jesse once more, and she didn't know if it was because of the story Finn had just told her, or because of the slight frown on Jesse's face. This was the moment Rachel had been waiting for; she would have a little fun at his expense.

But before she could even think what she to tell Jesse, Santana asked her:

"Who's the hot guy you were just talking to? Is that the famous Finn Hudson?"

"He's very handsome, isn't he? Yes, his name is Finn Hudson, but I didn't know he was that famous.."

"I mean famous as in having a particular fame, a reputation… But I don't care, he's super hot and I wouldn't mind…."

Sam interrupted her.

"Rachel, we were just planning a party for the whole cast and crew at our place for next weekend, right before the hiatus starts."

"What hiatus?"

"Oh, I thought you knew, our show will be taking a two month break, we need it after performing nonstop for a year and a half. Everyone's going home, but I was thinking of staying here…" he said looking longingly at Quinn, who smiled back at him.

"So Rachel, are you coming?"

"Sure! I hope we don't run late with rehearsals that day!"

"Believe me, you won't. Your director, producers and most of your cast will be there too." Jesse retorted.

"I didn't know you guys had such a big place."

"Actually, the party will be held in the communal garden in front of our house, which is perfectly suitable for everyone."

"You see, Rachel, our Jesse wants everything to always be perfect" Santana said while pouting and gesturing exaggeratedly with her hands.

Rachel turned to face Jesse.

"I'm sure your party will be perfect then. Is always striving for perfection a habit of yours?"

"I'm not going to deny that I believe things should be done right, no matter how small or insignificant they may be, but I could not pretend that I am perfect, everyone has faults and I'm not the exception" replied Jesse.

"I certainly know my faults, I talk too much and sometimes I tend to be exceedingly dramatic, but for the life of me, I cannot guess which may be your faults."

"Well, some people think I'm boring, since I'm not overtly social. And I also find it hard to forgive and forget offenses against my loved ones or myself."

"Not being overtly social cannot be a fault, but being resentful and staying that way can definitely be considered a serious fault…"

Jesse gave Rachel his signature smirk and lifted both shoulders before adding:

"Then as you can see, I'm far from perfect. But I cannot help it, I find it almost impossible to forgive, let alone forget. I guess that my good opinion once lost, is lost forever."

Rachel laughed.

"And you forgot to mention that you're also overly dramatic!"

Jesse smiled at her last remark.

"We have to be dramatic, aren't we well paid actors?"

Santana didn't like how the conversation that she started suddenly excluded her, so she decided to change the subject.

"So you and Quinn are roommates. Flatmates. Whatever, do you live far from here?"

"We live in a beautiful apartment in Notting Hill" replied Quinn.

"And we have another roommate, her name is Mercedes" added Rachel.

When the girls started talking to each other, Jesse felt grateful for the change of subject- he was beginning to feel the danger of paying Rachel too much attention.

* * *

**I love all your reviews, so keep'em coming! : )**


	5. Chapter 5

Three days after their last outing, Rachel was feeling a little down. Although she was living her dream, starring at a major show in the West End, she was feeling homesick and run down from the grueling rehearsal schedule. They'd had tech rehearsals the night before, and had stopped hundreds of times to make technical adjustments, only to end up at 3:00 am, and she was exhausted.

So when she got home she got exactly what she needed: her parents were waiting for her. She was beyond herself with happiness, but she was worried that she wouldn't have any time to spend with them before opening night.

But her dads reassured her.

"Oh, don't you worry about that! It's just that your father has an important conference right after the opening, and he has a flight scheduled for that same night, so we all decided to come early and do a little sightseeing." Hiram said while tenderly stroking his daughter's hair.

"And watch a few shows" – added Leroy. "Besides, we wanted to make sure you and your roommates or flatmates or however you call them are properly fed before opening night, we know how busy you all are and we wanted to have homemade meals ready for you! You must be sick of carry out."

Hiram continued: "We have it all planned: We'll come here from our hotel right after breakfast and cook vegan and regular food, then we'll leave you everything properly labeled in the fridge, you just have to reheat it whenever you get home. And if you guys want, we could also leave lunch for you at the theater…"

Rachel was so happy and grateful that she had tears in her eyes as she melted in another embrace with her parents.

She decided that she would spend the night with them at their hotel, just to catch up. So, after grilling her about every single aspect of the show, they wanted to know more about her social life.

"So, have you met anyone special?"

"Ha, I knew that question was coming…. Well , the answer is yes and no. I met someone that I like but I'm not even sure if he likes me back."

Her dads looked confused.

"I mean, I guess he likes me, we just don't know each other well enough for me to make a proper assessment… He's not in my show, but he's doing _Rent_ at the Coward. I'm dying to go see him, he wasn't performing the last time I went to see it in New York, can you believe he was off that precise weekend?"

Rachel wouldn't tell him his name, she knew her parents too well and she could imagine them asking Finn all sorts of questions by the stage door.

They spent most of the night talking about everything going on in their lives: Rachel was very close to her parents and she couldn't be happier they were there with her at that crucial time in her life.

* * *

Even though her dads were in town, Rachel left for the theater early as always, she needed the extra time in the morning to warm up her voice and she loved how peaceful the theater was just prior to rehearsals. She smiled all the way to the theater, but her smile only grew wider once she arrived there: Finn Hudson was waiting for her by the stage door.

"Hey beautiful" he said in a deep voice. "Coffee, or tea? I couldn't decide which one to get you, so I got you both. The tea is Earl Grey, and this is a cappuccino, pick one."

"Hello Finn" Rachel said coyly. "I'll take the tea, thank you, I do love Earl Grey."

"Good to know, there are so many things I still have to learn about you, Rachel…"

Rachel felt her heart thumping out of her chest, she just nervously smiled back at him while taking a sip of the hot tea.

"You look so happy!"

"Yes, I am happy, my dads surprised me last night, I was so happy to see them! And my mom will be coming tomorrow!"

"Your dads?"

Rachel giggled as she proceeded to tell him the story of her conception.

"Wow, your dads surely made a good job raising you! You must be so proud of them!"

"As a matter of fact, I am. I was thinking last night that I couldn't have asked for better parents, I'm so lucky!"

"I'd love to meet them! What are their names?" he added brazenly, and Rachel was a little shocked, and flattered at the same time.

"Leroy and Hiram…"

"Hmmm, hard to forget names… Listen, Rachel" –he said while stepping closer to her- "I know you're very busy with opening night and all, but I really like you and I'd love to get to know you better," He was now playing with a strand of her hair between his fingers, looking deeply into her eyes- "much better…"

"Hudson!" someone shouted, effectively breaking the intensity of the moment.

Finn looked up to see Sam coming towards them with Quinn. Rachel took a step back from Finn and resumed drinking her tea nervously, feeling something between relief and disappointment.

"Hello Sam, Quinn." Finn said somewhat coldly.

"Finn, I just got a call from the theater, they are looking for you, something about your understudy…"

"Oh, crap, I forgot my cell phone at home. I need to go!" He once again stepped closer to Rachel and leaned to kiss her cheek as he whispered right next to her ear "Hope to see you real soon Rachel, I mean it". He kissed her again before looking triumphantly at Sam and walking away.

'I can't stand that asshole" Sam muttered, and Quinn looked at him puzzled.

"Why?" asked Rachel. "Just because Jesse can't stand him?"

"No Rachel, it's a long story…"

"Speak of the devil" Rachel added when she saw Jesse approaching them.

But once more, Jesse proved to be a snob, he just nodded in their direction and kept walking straight to the stage door of his theater without looking back at the small group gathered across the alley. Rachel brushed off Jesse's behaviour as proof of everything Finn had told her, even though his disdain somehow bothered her deep inside.

* * *

Once Jesse was inside the theater, he stormed to his dressing room and locked the door behind him. He threw his messenger bag on a chair, and tried to calm down. He didn't know why he felt so angry.

"I want to rip his fucking eyes out…" He seethed through his teeth. It had been years since Finn had managed to infuriate him so much, and Jesse wasn't even thinking clearly. He started to breathe in and out slowly, trying to collect himself. Unclenching his fists and closing his eyes, he sat down and continued breathing deeply and slowly, he was not about to lose control over Finn. He had an ill feeling gnawing at the pit of his stomach: was he jealous?

He wondered if that was what jealousy felt like. The feeling was so foreign to him that he could barely acknowledge it, he'd never felt like that in his entire life, and he didn't like it. It had been a few days that he could not get Rachel Berry out of his mind, no matter how hard he tried, and it bothered him. Jesse St James was used to be in control, and there he was watching himself about to lose control over a girl. He was used to having girls at his beck and call; and even though he was always too busy to date, he always had any girl he wanted whenever his hormones requested a one night stand. But he had never been really interested in any particular girl until now.

Rachel Berry was so different, she was like a breath of fresh air amidst his hectic life, and he could not stop thinking about her. He loved the warmth that he felt inside whenever he saw her, as much as he also hated the rage he felt whenever he saw her with Finn. He could not deny it any longer: he was falling for the brown eyed girl, and no matter how he tried to rationalize it, he could not lie to himself any more.

The show went well as usual, the crowd's applause and praise were always humbling to him. He felt better after that, and most of the anger had already subsided. He loved to perform but he knew that they all needed a break; most of them had been working nonstop for more than two years, and he was looking forward to having a few months off, maybe then he could shake Rachel Berry out of his system. After a quick shower he went out to the stage door to meet the fans. A few autographs and posing for pictures later, he was surprised to see two gay men waiting for him. He was used to the fangirls and the occasional gay young man, but these two were middle aged, and a little bit too excited about meeting him. Jesse was by no means a homophobe, but sometimes when another man came way too close it made him uncomfortable. After posing and signing the playbill for the couple, Jesse saw that Finn had also exited and was signing autographs behind him.

Feeling some of the anger creeping back, he was distracted when one of the gay men told him "We're so happy to meet you, we think you might know our daughter, she is a big fan of yours and has been following your steps back since you were in the showchoir circuit!" Hiram felt his partner's elbow sharply in his side, and stopped talking.

Jesse lifted both eyebrows not knowing what to say, but before he could speak, he was interrupted by Finn.

"Oh, you must be Leroy and Hiram! Hello, I'm Finn Hudson, and I think your daughter is the most talented thing that ever lived!"

"Ooh, so you're Rachel's friend!" Hiram exclaimed right before feeling Leroy's elbow again at his side.

Finn laughed. "Well, yes, you could say so, although I AM trying to get to know her better"

Fuck. Never in a million years Jesse would have thought that Rachel had two gay dads. If he wasn't so pissed at Finn and at himself at that moment, he would have also introduced himself, but he just nodded and carried on with the next fan. He could still see Finn talking to Rachel's parents as if they were old friends, so as soon as he could he left the theater without looking back.

"Dude, did you know that Rachel has two gay dads, like that girl from school, what was her name?"

"Kimberly Dawson. I actually found out by accident today, thanks to Finn."

"That asshole, did you see how he's hitting on Rachel? The guy has no shame, after everything he's done! I want to tell Quinn, Rachel should be aware of the kind of person he really is."

"Please don't, Sam. I know you have good intentions, but this all could be misconstrued as us against true love, and I don't want to go over that once more. Let's just wait and see how serious it gets, then we'll decide if we should tell them or not."

"I hope he doesn't hurt her, man, she's cool. By the way, she said she couldn't come to the party because her dads and mom were here, but I told her that we had no problem if she wanted to bring them over."

"Very well then. But let's make sure Tina has everything under control, this party needs to be epic!"

Sam gave Jesse a baffled look.

"Epic? What do you mean?"

"Nothing really. I just want it to be a good party."

As they went over the plans for the party with Tina, Jesse couldn't help but think that maybe Finn had scored with her dads, but maybe he still had a chance with her mom. He was hopeful and at the same time was disgusted with himself for feeling so desperate, but there was something about the girl that grabbed onto him and didn't let go. He was haunted by her eyes: there was something about them; maybe it was the way light reflected off them, their sparkle, the soft dance of her lashes…

He felt that the party was the time to either make it or break it with her, he just needed to somehow show her how interested he really was. Now, if she could only see through Finn…

* * *

I'm so sorry for taking so long to update! December has been crazy for me! But the good news is, Chapter 6 is almost done and should be updated by Wednesday, it is the Netherfield Ball aka the garden party, LOL! Thanks to my wonderful beta Original Groffete for her edits and suggestions! Reviews are love, so show me a little love!


	6. Chapter 6

**Thanks for all your reviews, cooments and suggestions, they are the reason I'm posting stories here! And thanks to Original Groffete for taking time from her real life to beta this story! You're the best!**

* * *

Rachel had spent the last hour with her eyes closed. At first, she just requested to be seated with her back to the mirror, but when she saw the long, dark locks of hair falling to the ground, she simply had to close her eyes to keep her tears from falling.

Rachel, Quinn and Mercedes knew that there was a possibility their hair would be cut to fit their roles, but they also knew that actresses from the last revival of Chicago in Broadway had pulled it off by wearing wigs. However the London production was different, with a new director, new producers and new hair and makeup designer. They had all agreed wigs were not acceptable: the hair had to come off. Rachel did not raise any objection, she was willing to do anything in order to get into character, but she was sad about losing her hair.

Rachel loved her hair. Ever since she could remember, she'd worn it long, and she only visited her dads' stylist 2 or 3 times a year just to have her ends trimmed. The only noticeable change in her hair happened back in high school, when she got bangs for a year or so. But there she was, with her back to the mirror, knowing that the hair she'd known and loved all her life was about to be cut into a short bob.

"It's only hair, it will grow back" she kept telling herself, but the truth was that she somehow felt a big part of her personality was being chopped off, as if her hair in itself conveyed half of her character. And something as simple as a haircut, which would be so uncomplicated for someone else, was becoming convoluted to her, until the press arrived. One of the producers arranged for the cut hair to be donated to a charity that makes wigs for cancer patients, and a little publicity about it would be great for the show.

So as soon as the presence of the press was announced, Rachel forgot the entire haircut dilemma and she just focused on the task at hand: causing a great first impression. Her dads would always tell her to approach everyone as if she was auditioning, given the importance of causing a good first impression: casting directors rarely gave someone a second chance, and neither would the press and the public in general. She wasn't about to have her first important interview crying over hair, so she immediately composed herself and put on her best smile.

Hours later, Rachel stood in front of the mirror at home in her new stylish bob, next to Quinn with her own short bob and perm. They looked at themselves solemnly, until Mercedes arrived with her own short do and they both burst out laughing, with Mercedes joining them as they laughed so hard they cried. When the laughter subsided, they opened a bottle of wine and made a little shrine to their lost tresses: Rachel put some ponytail holders and her curling iron, Quinn offered her flat iron and Mercedes her big round brush. They decided between them that they all looked amazing, and that was the end of the haircut drama.

The next day at the theater, all the buzz was centered on the big Rent party happening in Notting Hill. Rehearsals were lack-luster- the girls gossiped about the dresses they would wear later, while the boys were distracted by thoughts of who they could seduce. All in all, anticipation for the big party just about killed a day of rehearsal. And just as Jesse had anticipated, everyone was let off earlier than usual in order to get ready for the party. Quinn left for the party early with Mercedes and Noah, but Rachel stayed behind. She took her time to get ready; she wanted to make certain that Finn saw her looking her very best. She hadn't seen him for a few days, and was giddy at the prospect of talking –and maybe even dancing- with him.

When her dads picked her up, they showered her with compliments.

"You look amazing, sweetie. Look Hiram, our baby turned into a star…." Leroy said proudly.

She was wearing a simple, dark blue short strapless dress, with a fitted bodice and a flounce skirt, gold platforms and a gold sea star on the side of her head.

And just like the star she was, she made her grand entrance to the party with one dad on each arm.

* * *

"Was it 'West Side Story', Jesse? Jesse? Hello, Earth to Jesse!" Sam exclaimed while laughing, it was so unlike Jesse to be distracted from a conversation that included anything related to theater.

But then everyone in their small group saw the reason behind Jesse's diversion, his eyes were completely focused on the figure that had just arrived, escorted by two men. Quinn looked at Jesse, and then at Rachel, truly surprised to see that her friend was the reason why Jesse seemed suddenly so out of it.

The fact that he was ogling Rachel did not escape Santana, who did not let the opportunity for a snide remark pass her by.

"Oh, look, it's the Jewish Velma!"

Her nasty comment made Jesse snap out of the apparent trance Rachel's arrival had put him into.

"You were saying," he said with a furrowed brow, looking at Sam. Sam just laughed out loud.

"Wow, Jesse! I didn't know you had the..."

Jesse interrupted him before he could finish.

"No, no, it's just… hmmm, it's just the ..." He was still so impressed by Rachel that words suddenly eluded him, so he moved his hand to the side of his head, gesturing to her new hairstyle.

"She also looks good!" Sam said while looking at Quinn.

"Yeah, she looks so pretty!" remarked a smiling Tina.

"Don't be a hypocrite Tina, she looks horrible" Santana cut her bluntly. "No offense, Quinn, but your friend looks like a hobbit prostitute. That hair makes her nose look ten times bigger... Ugh...She doesn't look good at all! What do you think, Jesse?"

"Actually, she just doesn't look good... She looks stunning..." he said, looking at Santana squarely in the eyes. "Now, will you excuse me."

With that, Jesse left the group and went to get a drink. He could see that Rachel was looking for someone, probably for Finn, who thankfully hadn't arrived yet.

"Why so somber, Jesse?" asked Tina, who also went to get a drink.

"Do I really look somber?" he gave Tina a sincere smile. The truth was that his somber appearance offered only a glimpse of the storm raging inside of him, he felt more and more attracted to Rachel in spite of himself, and he hated losing control like that.

"Yes you do, a little. Why don't you just admit it?"

"Admit what?"

"That you like her, Rachel Berry."

Jesse laughed as he threw his head back.

"No, I don't like her like that. I just think she's remarkably talented."

Tina rolled her eyes.

"You know, I think she's looking for someone, probably Finn…"

Lately the mere mention of Rachel and Finn in the same sentence made Jesse's blood boil in his veins. He gulped his drink and asked for another.

"Well, I hope that asshole doesn't show up here."

* * *

"Hello Rachel, I'm glad you could make it.

"Hello Jesse… Thanks for inviting us. I'd like you to meet my dads, Leroy and Hiram, this is Jesse St James."

"I'm glad we've been properly introduced, but I believe we've met. How do you do?"

Jesse shook both their hands, while Rachel stood there looking confused.

"You've met?"

Rachel's dads opened their eyes widely to Jesse, who immediately understood that their daughter did not know anything about their stage door encounter and tried to change the subject.

"Rachel, and where's your mom?"

"She couldn't make it, she's stuck in New York until right before the opening."

"This place is absolutely amazing, Mr. St James. Do you own this?"

Jesse laughed. "Please call me Jesse. I wish this place was mine, but it's our communal garden, our house is over there" he pointed to an elegant three story building nearby.

Rachel had been so busy looking for Finn that she had not looked at the garden: she'd never seen anything more beautiful. There were lots of trees, and the whole place was lit by white Chinese lanterns, there must have been hundreds of them in different sizes.

"It's so beautiful!" Rachel sighed.

"Rachel, hi!" Quinn interrupted them, giving her friend a quick hug.

"Have you seen Finn?" Rachel asked Quinn in a very low voice.

"No, apparently no one knows where he is." Quinn whispered back.

"But was he invited? Maybe he was the only one of the cast that Jesse didn't invite."

"No, he was invited, I asked Sam, and he said everyone was invited."

"Then where is he, I've looked everywhere."

Rachel and Quinn were interrupted by Sam, followed by Jesse. Quinn left to dance with Sam, and Rachel and Jesse stood awkwardly side by side for a few seconds, and then both of them tried to speak at the same time.

"I'm going…"

"Would you…"

They laughed.

"You first."

"No, no, Jesse, you first." She smiled at him. He was going to offer her a drink, but her smile encouraged him, and he took a chance.

"Would you like to dance?"

Rachel was so taken by surprise at his request that before she realized what she was doing, she said yes. _Damn_ –she thought- _I should've spoken first_. Nevertheless, she smiled at him. It was just one dance, how bad could it be?

Jesse took her hand and led her to the dance floor.

However, just like in a John Hughes eighties teen movie, the upbeat music that was playing faded to slow music. So Jesse slid his right arm behind Rachel's back, while holding her hand with his left. The simple act of holding her so close fueled his inner turmoil, and he felt a bizarre feeling in his chest that was as unfamiliar as it was fantastic, and his brow furrowed instinctively, bewildered by the strong new sensation pulsing through him.

Rachel wondered what was wrong with him, she could swear she felt him tremble slightly when he pulled her close, and he was looking at her like if he suddenly realized he needed to be somewhere else. His stance was starting to make her feel uncomfortable, so she decided to break the ice.

"The place looks wonderful, did you guys hire a party planner?"

Jesse looked somehow relieved.

"No we didn't, we all had a general idea of what we wanted, but it was Tina who did all of this, and I think she did a great job."

"Believe me, she did…"

After a while she broke their silence again.

"So Jesse, tell me something, anything."

He smiled at her.

"Do you always talk while you dance?"

"Sometimes. Other times I sing. It would be weird to spend the whole dance in silence."

Rachel felt him tightening his grip on her, and she was taken aback when he looked her in the eyes and finally spoke.

"Well, I like your new look, it's hmmm… you look… beautiful."

She could feel herself blushing deeply, did Jesse St James just gave her a compliment? Was he drunk or under the influence? He was acting so strangely, she needed to change the subject immediately.

"The other day when you met us at the alley you didn't say hi." She said, clearly referring to the time when she was talking to Finn and he barely acknowledged their presence.

"Sorry, it's just that I'm not exactly a fan of your new friend."

"Well, I understand that he used to be your friend too."

Jesse laughed sarcastically.

"Surely Finn has no trouble making new friends, but I'm not sure he has the ability of retaining them."

Their conversation was suddenly interrupted by the boisterous laugh of Mercedes and Puck, who had certainly had a little too much to drink. Rachel felt herself blushing again, her friends were quite loud. Jesse turned his head to their direction, and for a second she could see an expression of disgust on his face. But he continued with their conversation.

"You were saying"

"I remember you saying that you hardly ever forgave, that your resentment once created was unable to be overcome. I wonder if maybe retaining a friendship is harder when one of the involved does not forgive. After all, friends, like every other human on the planet, make mistakes."

"Simple mistakes can be forgiven, but other offenses cannot."

They were clearly uncomfortable with the subject and danced in silence until the upbeat music returned. Jesse then escorted her out of the dance floor, gave her a toothless grin, nodded, and left.

* * *

Rachel returned to Quinn, and extracted her from Sam delicately.

"I think I need your help with something in the ladies room…"

Once there, she let out a loud sigh.

"Arghhh! That was so weird, so uncomfortable! What is wrong with your boyfriend's friend? Ugh, he's so strange!"

Quinn smiled.

'He's not my boyfriend yet… and Jesse is not weird, I think he likes you. When you got here he…"

"Please, Quinn, spare me." Rachel interrupted her friend.

"Any news of Finn's whereabouts?"

"Actually, I just heard Santana say that he wasn't feeling too well this afternoon, and that she doubted he could get here."

Rachel felt the wind was knocked out of her chest. Finn and Santana? Were they going out? Didn't Finn tell her recently that he wanted to know her better? She had so many questions, but the only thing that left her mouth was

"Santana?"

Quinn could see that her friend was upset and confused, but she felt it was not the right time to tell her that Santana was basically a slut, and the only guy she couldn't get was Jesse. Sam told her that she even made a move on him when his mom and her dad got married "_Back in college, she would basically screw anything with a dick. Entire dorms Quinn, I'm not kidding_."

"Apparently they're old friends or something." was all that Quinn would tell her though, since she didn't want to hurt her friend any further with information that maybe was overstated, after all, Sam could not stand Santana.

"Oh…"

Rachel looked heartbroken for a second, but quickly gave Quinn her fake smile. Quinn put her hand on her friend's arm reassuringly.

What neither of them knew was that Finn would probably spend the entire night sleeping, completely unaware that he was missing a party he had every intention of attending. He had spent the afternoon with Santana at a hotel, and when he complained of a headache after several rounds of wild sex, she offered him two Percocet, telling him they were just ibuprofen…

* * *

**Hope you liked it! I need suggestions on how to make Jesse not being comfortable with her friends and family. "Could you expect me to rejoice in the inferiority of your connections?" **

**I don't want to use her dads, any ideas?**


	7. Chapter 7

Rachel was determined to have a good time at the party, with or without Finn. She spent some time talking to the producers of Rent, who seemed interested in her, and she even danced with one of them. Every once in a while she would catch a glimpse of Jesse, who happened to be looking at her each and every time, right before averting his gaze elsewhere.

Mercedes and Puck were hoarding the karaoke that had started earlier, and both were so drunk that they were bellowing rather than singing. After a while, she and Quinn persuaded them to stop singing, so they both took to the dance floor. Rachel danced with Puck, who was putting up quite a display with his drunken dance moves. Rachel didn't know if she should laugh or cry, she had never before been so embarrassed by her friends.

But then she heard the most beautiful voice purr out of the speakers: Jesse St James was singing "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" by Elton John in the piano, and everyone was enthralled listening to him. For a moment she forgot the weird arrogant ass he was: he was truly, superbly talented, and by the end of the song she was so moved that she could feel tears threatening to escape her eyes. He ended the song with a simple 'thank you' after everyone applauded, after which the karaoke resumed.

Jesse didn't talk to Rachel after they danced, he could see that she was quite busy tending to her drunken flatmates, and he was busy himself talking to all his cast members. But when he saw that she and her dads and a semi conscious Mercedes were gathering their things to leave, he once again went to where she was, looking tired and spent but as beautiful as ever. She smiled at him as he made his way to them.

"Thank you so much for inviting us, the party was wonderful."

He gave her a warm smile, while shaking her dads' hands.

"Thank you for coming, it has been my pleasure. Do you need a cab or someone to take you home?"

"No thank you, don't worry, we'll walk to Rachel's place and hail a cab there, we could use some walking after eating and drinking so much!"

Rachel lived within walking distance of him? That was a nice piece of intel that he was grateful to know. He could not deny it any longer: he was falling for her, and there was nothing he could do about it.

* * *

Finn was furious. He had been awakened by a hotel maid prodding him with the back end of a feather duster, afraid that he was dead. At first he was disoriented about his whereabouts and the time, but soon enough his iPhone brought him back to reality: he'd been sleeping for at least 16 hours, and had missed the big event. The last thing he remembered was taking two pills that Santana had given him.

_Fucking stupid bitch_… Who knew what she had given him. Santana wasn't one of his favorite people at the moment, even though she had been a great lay. Still, what he really wanted was to get into Rachel Berry's pants, he was so close…

He was sure to give Santana a piece of his mind- maybe he would get lucky again- before he left for New York on that same day.

* * *

Rachel was growing more and more nervous as the opening night approached. Even though she nailed all her lines and dance moves, she wanted to make sure everything was perfect. She spent most of her waking time in the theater, and the only breaks she took were to catch a breath of fresh air outside. Every time she opened the stage door, she hoped to see Finn there waiting for her, but she knew that he had left to New York the day after the party. She never found out the extent of his relationship with Santana: if he wasn't interested enough to call her, she wanted nothing to do with him, even though she really liked him.

Whenever she went for some air outside the theater, Rachel would close her eyes and raise her face to the sun. Feeling the warm light in her face somehow replenished her energy, so she stayed like that for a few minutes, breathing deeply and stretching her arms over her head.

She was startled when she heard his voice.

"Stocking up on some Vitamin D?"

She lowered her head and opened her eyes to see the ever handsome Jesse St James, wearing a leather jacket over a black t-shirt and jeans.

"Hello Jesse. How are you doing?"

He removed his sunglasses and smiled at her, noticing that her eyes looked even prettier in the sunlight. Rachel noticed that his hand was swollen.

"I'm good, and you?"

"I'm very anxious about opening night."

She offered him a little smile. "I like to get some sun and fresh air, the stage lights can be too much after a while. What happened to your hand?"

"This? It's nothing, hmmm… just a freak accident with a case of wine the day after the party. But it's really nothing, it's just a bruise." He immediately changed the subject. "I know what you mean about the stage lights, when I first started, I would even see them in my dreams!"

Rachel laughed, feeling comfortable talking to him for the first time.

"I thought you were also going home."

"I was, but I decided to stay. Sam didn't want to miss your opening night, and to be frank, neither did I. As a matter of fact, we're invited to the final dress rehearsal on Thursday."

"Great! We'll see you then! Listen, I have to get back…"

"Sure, I understand, go ahead I'm waiting for Sam."

_That was odd-_ Rachel could not make out the real Jesse St James, sometimes he was very nice, and others quite the opposite. She didn't give him much thought as soon as she got back to the stage, but she saw him again the next day. He was more serious, like wanting to say something but not being able to do so.

He just kept staring at her, barely talking, looking somehow conflicted.

"Jesse, are you okay?"

"Yes, I think I am…" and with that he left her by the stage door, wondering what was really wrong with him.

* * *

Finn Hudson managed to get invited to a big movie premiere, and even though lesser Broadway gods were considered part of the B-List, Finn always managed to get some publicity since he made sure to always mingle with the A-Listers, after all, he had connections everywhere. He caused quite a stir when he arrived with a black eye. As a whirl of reporters and paparazzi took his picture, he just gave them his signature lopsided smile and after being asked many questions, he explained to them how he got it.

"You see, when you have been with a cast and crew for so long, you cannot help but become a tight knit family. And as families go, sometimes there are disagreements over stuff. Let's just say this was brothers' quarrel, a little reminder of London…"

He laughed deeply after that remark, and was immediately showered with whys, whos, and wheres, but he demurely declined to comment, saying:

"As I said, it was a brothers' quarrel, and it has been taken care of. I don't want to harm my brother in any way."

Finn and his black eye made the cover of the gossip section of a major London newspaper, and he was the fodder of all watercooler gossiping.

_Brother's Quarrel or Stage Envy?_

There was a small picture of Jesse on the right hand corner of the article – _"Brother" or Foe._

* * *

Rachel found out soon enough that everyone at rehearsals that day had their own version of the fight, but most of them pointed to a jealous Jesse as the perpetrator.

She could not find Quinn during the break, but had a chance to talk to Mercedes, whom she knew had become good friends with Tina Cohen. It was the day of the dress rehearsal and everyone was in a frenzy over everything, so it was not an easy task to pull her aside and get her to talk.

"Do you know anything about the fight? Is it true that Jesse was jealous? Of what? Talent? A girl? Oh my gosh, were they fighting over Santana?"

"Whoa girl, slow down, you're making me dizzy! I heard something but it's probably not true, and it's not worth repeating it."

Now Rachel was curious.

"What? Please Mercedes, you have to tell me! What did Tina tell you?"

"Tina didn't tell me anything, just that it wasn't Jesse's fault."

"So, it was Jesse that punched him in the face?"

Rachel suddenly recollected seeing Jesse's battered hand.

"I saw his swollen hand, but he said it was some kind of freak accident with a case of wine! What happened?"

"Well, as I told you I'm not sure, but the other day that bitch Santana told me something about it…" Mercedes was hesitating too much, and Rachel couldn't wait to find out.

"Oh come on Mercedes, just say it!"

"I'm sorry Rachel, it's just that it has to do with you, and I don't want you getting hurt. Regardless, I guess now you need to know. Santana said something about Finn going over to their place to say goodbye before he left. Apparently Jesse said something about you and Finn snapped and punched him first…"

Rachel was dumbfounded by the revelation.

"What? They fought over me? But what did Jesse say? What did Tina say?"

"I told you Rachel, the only thing Tina said was that it wasn't Jesse's fault. Santana was the one that said it was over you, over how he was going to seduce you now that Finn was out of the picture, and something about you being easy prey. But Rachel I don't believe her, I believe Tina, and besides, Jesse is such a good person…"

Rachel's face was crimson red before she spat-

"Good person my ass, he's an arrogant son of a bitch, who does he think he is?"

Not only was her friend cursing, something she rarely did, she was also crying. Mercedes pulled her into a tight comforting hug.

"That's why I didn't want to tell you! Don't worry, we'll get to the bottom of this and see what really happened."

Rachel broke the hug and looked at Mercedes with tear filled eyes.

"There's nothing to find out, I already know what Jesse St James is capable of. Forget it, just forget it. To hell with him!" She cried before running to her dressing room.

Mercedes didn't go after her, she knew well enough to give her some time alone to calm down, or else she would turn into a full-fledged drama queen.

* * *

The dress rehearsal was a success, and since the director believed in taking a full free day before the opening, everyone was having drinks at the pub. Rachel was still shaken by Mercedes' story, and even though she wanted to confront Quinn about it, she couldn't find the proper time to do so, since they were sorrounded by people. The minute she was finally able to talk to her alone, Sam and Jesse appeared out of nowhere and interrupted them. Just the sight of Jesse's face infuriated her.

"I need some air" was all she could muster before going outside by herself, Jesse St James was the last person she wanted to see right then.

"Rachel, are you okay?"

_Talk about shitty timing… _She didn't turn to face him, he was probably going to butter her up telling her how good she had been in dress rehearsal, and she wasn't up to it: she didn't want to make a scene there.

"Rachel please, I need to talk to you." He now touched her arm, and she turned around.

"What Jesse? What could you possibly say to me?"

He stood closer to her and looked deeply into her eyes, completely oblivious to the rage behind them.

"Rachel… it's just that... I just…"

"What Jesse, you just what?" she exclaimed, already exasperated after a few seconds of silence.

Jesse finally spoke again.

"I love you."

Rachel felt as if she had been struck by lightning. She crossed her arms and looked at him as if he was a complete lunatic.

"What?"

She flinched as he stepped even closer and put his hands in her elbows.

"I love you Rachel. I'm in love with you…"

* * *

I did have fun writing this one! I hate to complain about reviews, but I was bummed that I almost didn't get any for the last chapter, especially since I always take the time to review if I like a story, even if I'm reading it from my phone! I was afraid that I was butchering the story, it's just harder to adapt to modern times than I thought!

Anyway, thanks a lot to Original Groffete for beta-ing this story, I'm having a blast beta-ing hers, you're in for a treat with "Sucker Love"!

And don"t forget to drop a line if you liked this one!


	8. Chapter 8

"I love you. I'm in love with you"

"Jesse..."

He smiled nervously as he pulled her closer in an awkward hug, since Rachel didn't hug him back, but he was so excited he didn't even notice.

He then pulled back, and still smiling, he put a hand to his head and moved it from side to side disbelievingly.

"I can't believe I'm actually saying this, especially when every part of my mind and my reason tells me this is wrong, that you're not right for me. But I can't fight this any longer, I won't deny what I feel for you any longer. This is it: you're the one, Rachel. I love you."

Jesse then proceeded to excitedly tell her how he had fought against the fact that she was just fresh out of college whereas he was already an established star; that she was Jewish, and that she had two homosexual dads. He even told her that he was even willing to forgive her if she had had anything to do with Finn. Then he reaffirmed how much he loved her in spite of all of his reservations.

Rachel was aghast with Jesse's declaration. She was expecting something else, not a full fledged declaration of love. She could see throughout his nervous monologue that he was confident her reaction would be favorable.

When he finished talking, he put both hands on her shoulders, still smiling.

"Rachel..." he said lovingly.

She delicately removed his hands from her shoulders, and she was relieved that her simple action removed the silly smile from his face.

"I'm sorry Jesse, I can't reciprocate your feelings, I do not feel remotely the same way you say you do."

He looked confused. "I'm not just saying this, Rachel, I'm sure that I love you..."

"Then I'm sorry if you really love me, but you do have a rather peculiar way of expressing your feelings. Nevertheless Jesse, I don't share them. I don't mean to cause you any pain, and I'm sorry if I do, but I'm sure that all of the reservations you just expressed will help you to quickly overcome it."

Jesse looked at her with a furrowed brow, his light green-blue eyes darkened, and his overall expression now somber. Her reaction was definitely not something he was expecting. He felt incredulous and irate at the same time, and took a long moment before speaking again. She could see that he was so taken aback that he couldn't even put his acting skills to work.

"If you don't mind, may I ask why are you rejecting me so rudely, without even considering giving me an opportunity?"

"And if you don't mind, may I ask why you chose to so blatantly insult me by telling me that you loved me against your will, against your reason, and even against your character? Wasn't this enough excuse for rudeness, if I even was rude? But I have other reasons. I know all about your fight with Finn concerning your stupid plan to seduce me, and how you consider me an easy prey. What would tempt me to accept or even give an opportunity to someone that wishes to hurt me and possibly tarnish my reputation just to prove that he is better than his former best friend?"

Jesse just stood there in front of her, his arms crossed and his face visibly flushed as Rachel continued.

"But don't think that this is all that prevents me from accepting you. I've had you figured out all along, ever since Finn told me everything about you."

"Finn told you everything about ME?" Jesse interrupted her, his tone sarcastic.

"Yes, everything. He told me how you used to be best friends, how as you grew up you couldn't handle the fact that he posed a threat to your own talent, how you completely dismissed him from your life just because he was cast in a role you wanted, how your pride was more important than your friendship. And he told me about your scheming ways, like dating the casting director's daughter just to get a part. You use people for your convenience Jesse, and when someone doesn't suit your interests anymore, you discard them from your life."

Jesse could not believe what was coming out of Rachel's mouth, did she really think that he was so shallow and devious? He felt a tight knot twisting his stomach, that was not supposed to be happening, it was all warped and wrong. He finally mustered the strength to speak again.

"So this is your opinion of me! Thank you for explaining it so fully. My faults, according to you, are heavy indeed. But maybe you would've overlooked those faults if I didn't hurt your pride by telling you the truth of how I feel, of my inner struggle. Do you expect me to celebrate the fact that you are practically a fangirl who can easily fall for a star, like you did with Hudson? Or that your dads are gay? These are serious things that I took into consideration before relating my feelings for you. I don't believe in dressing up the truth, and even now I don't regret what I told you, my feelings are natural and justified."

Rachel was now furious, but she tried to compose herself before telling him:

"You're wrong, Jesse, if you think that I would've overlooked your faults if you had dressed up the truth, it just spared me the concern I might have felt in refusing you, had you behaved in a more gentlemanlike manner."

She could see the way her words affected him greatly, but she could not help but continue.

"You could not have declared your feelings in any possible way that would've tempt me to have anything to do with you. From the moment I met you, your manners, your arrogance, your conceit and your selfish disdain of the feelings of others were enough for me to know that you were the last guy on earth I would want anything to do with. I don't want your friendship, and I certainly don't care for your love."

Jesse interrupted her, his face discomposed by the surprise of his defeat. He closed his eyes briefly, and when he opened them, he said:

"You've said enough, Rachel. I understand your feelings perfectly, and I'm sorry for telling you the way I felt. Forgive me for taking so much of your time, I wish you the best."

With that, he left. Rachel stayed behind, tears now flowing freely, unable to process all that had happened. It wasn't until she felt her phone vibrating that she was taken off her reverie. It was a message from Quinn, asking if she was ok, and if Jesse was with her. Rachel replied that she was going home, and turned off her phone. She decided to walk, it was a long way but she needed some time to put her thoughts in order, she had never felt so many emotions at the same time. Jesse St James was in love with her! The Jesse St James, her former idol, the unattainable talented handsome demigod she used to admire so much! Of course, after she met him, she got to know the real Jesse St James, the arrogant bastard that had suddenly turned her world upside down. Rachel could not understand why someone like him would go through the trouble of telling her he loved her just to seduce her. She was so confused, so angry, that she couldn't stop crying.

When she finally got home after a while, Quinn was waiting for her, and pulled her into a tight hug.

"Rachel, where have you been, I've been worried sick about you! What happened? Why are you crying?"

Rachel smiled at her through her tears.

"Let's go inside, I'll tell you everything. I've been trying to talk to you all day!"

Quinn listened to her friend, and she was as surprised as Rachel was about Jesse's feelings. They stayed up drinking tea and talking until neither could keep their eyes open.

* * *

Rachel slept for a few hours, but when she woke up and recalled the previous night's events, she decided she needed to clear her mind and get some fresh air, so she put on her running gear and was warming up in front of the house when she suddenly saw him out of the corner of her eye: Jesse St James was walking towards her, and it was too late for her to get back inside.

"Hi, I was hoping to run into you, could you please read this?"

He handed her an envelope, nodded slightly and left immediately. Rachel debated whether or not to throw the envelope in the nearest trashcan, but she couldn't resist the curiosity of knowing what was inside, so she jogged to a nearby park and sat down to open the envelope.

It was the first time that she received an envelope from someone of her own generation, she was used to e-mails, texts and chats, and the occasional note handing during high school. It felt so strange in her hands… She opened the envelope carefully, and opened the enclosed letter, which consisted of several hand-written pages. The first thing that caught Rachel's attention was Jesse's beautiful penmanship. She thought she possessed good penmanship, she put a lot of effort into it since her signature had to be spotless on those playbills she intended to sign one day. But Jesse's handwriting was almost calligraphic, the letters long and lean and perfectly spaced.

_Dear Rachel…_

_

* * *

_

**Sorry it has it has taken me so long to update, I've been sick and just plain lazy, enjoying all of your stories! This chapter borrows a lot of the original language, since it's almost impossible not to use it! Thanks to my amazing beta Original Groffette!**

******I'll be good and update soon, but leave me a few lines, I'm open to suggestions! And Happy New Year!**


	9. Chapter 9

__

__

_Dear Rachel: _

_Don't be anxious thinking that this letter contains a repetition of those feelings that were so disgusting to you last night. However, I must trouble you once more requesting that you read this letter, because I consider it is necessary in order to shed light on certain matters that were then discussed. _

_You accused me of thinking only of myself, and not caring about the feelings of others. Specifically, you mentioned my insulting you by relating my reservations regarding your situation, and my distancing from a former best friend, even getting in a fight with him over my alleged plans to seduce you. I can only hope that when you finish reading this letter, you are in a better position to understand what really happened; my actions and their motives. If during the course of this letter I somehow offend you, I can only say that I'm sorry, but you deserve to know the truth. _

_I pride myself in keeping my personal life very private, and if there is one thing that I loathe is having my life on public display. I have sacrificed many things in order to keep my personal life private, for instance I don't frequent bars and pubs, and my social life is quite limited to the company of my family, my close friends and co-workers. That is the reason I was certain that starting a relationship with you would probably put me in the spotlight, that we would become tabloid fodder. It happened unwillingly after my fight with Finn, which he made sure to make public, and I'm sure it would have also happened to us, due to your particular circumstances. The fact that you are barely starting out in theater is nothing compared to the fact that you come from a very unusual family. That alone is enough to create enough tabloid material for months, having papparazzi follow us and digging into our private lives in order to sell magazines. Maybe you find this hard to understand because you're just staring out, but I've been in the spotlight long enough to know that in order to keep some semblance of a private, normal life, you sometimes have to stand in the shadows after coming down from the stage. Some actors thrive on the fact that their faces are almost guaranteed to appear weekly in magazine stands across the world, but you don't strike me as the kind of person who would enjoy that. Nevertheless, I may be wrong, and I apologize again if I have offended you further with my account. _

_With respect to the other, heavier accusation of putting distance between myself and Finn Hudson out of spite and jealousy, to the point of assaulting him physically while he defended your honor, I can only refute it by explaining his relation to me and my family. I don't know what he told you about me, but I assure you that what I will tell you about my relationship with Finn is the truth, and to that effect I have more than one witness. Finn and I grew up together, our families were very close and we were the best of friends since early childhood. We went to the same private school, and Finn's father, being an Attorney, helped my parents with the adoption process of my sister Tina when we were six years old. Not many people know that Tina Cohen is actually Tina Cohen St James, since she has been using her biological mother's surname since high school. Finn, Tina and I were inseparable, and our friends used to call us 'Triplets' since we were always together and took care of one another. It was Finn and his family that helped us immensely after we lost our mother when we were only 10 years old. _

_However, things changed in high school, after we were all accepted to a private performance arts school we all wanted to go. By then, Finn's father had lost most of his money due to a hedge fund scheme, and it was my father who voluntarily paid for Finn's tuition in full, since Finn was like another son to him. Even though Finn never expressed it, his family's financial situation affected him, and he started to change, no longer hanging out with us, to the point where he ignored us by sophomore year when I was cast as Tony on a school production of West Side Story. Tina did not audition for the play since she wanted to work on her vocal skills, and little did I know that while I was constantly rehearsing, Finn managed to convince Tina to start a secret relationship, which she kept from me until I discovered them fighting over the fact that Tina had gotten pregnant, she was only sixteen at the time. _

_Finn wanted her to have an abortion and took her to a clinic, but Tina wasn't sure about it and backed out at the last minute. Once I became aware of their predicament, we held several discussions about what could be done, and Finn made it perfectly clear that he wanted nothing to do with Tina. She was sad and heartbroken, but before our families found out, Tina had a miscarriage. Neither my dad nor Finn's ever found out about it, but that was enough for me to sever all my ties with him; he was no longer the brother he used to be. My dad thought that Finn and I had distanced due to a typical adolescent disagreement, he never found out the truth and Finn acted as if nothing had happened in front of him. When my dad died unexpectedly when we were seventeen, but since he loved Finn like a son, he had set up a trust fund in his name that would take care of his college tuition and expenses. _

_I'm sure that you can keep this matter in confidence, even though you could ask Tina about it if you ever feel the need to corroborate the truth of what I'm relating to you. We met Finn again when we auditioned for Rent back in New York, when he made sure to let me know that he was dating the casting director's daughter and that I might as well audition for another play, but I guess his influence was not as great as he thought for I was cast as Roger, which was the part he also auditioned for. It hasn't been easy working with him all these years, but we all have somehow gotten used to it. _

_Finally, I must explain to you about the alleged fight with Finn. The day after our party, I came back from the gym to find Tina, Sam and Quinn gathered in the kitchen, whispering about something. Almost immediately Finn came out of the guest room where Santana was staying, and upon encountering us, he started mocking us, calling us "The Brady Fucking Bunch", and telling me that he knew that I had been all over you during the party. When I asked him to leave our house, he told me that he didn't care if I pounced at you once he left for New York, because he had you first, and when he kept on gloating about how easily you had fallen for him, taunting me about wanting his leftovers, I confronted him. He tried to hit me first but missed, and then I punched him on the face. Sam immediately got between us to stop the fight and demanded that Finn leave, which he did after insulting me again and vowing revenge. _

_Your friend Quinn was there, and she witnessed the whole incident. I asked her not to tell you anything, and she obliged knowing that you would be hurt if you found out. We never thought Finn would resort to telling the tabloids, but then again, he is the kind of person that likes to get attention no matter what. I'm sure your friend will have no trouble in telling you the truth now that you know what really transpired between Finn and myself. _

_I did not tell you about this last night, not wanting to prolong our heated exchange, but upon further consideration, I thought that you deserved to know the truth. Thank you for reading this letter, and rest assured that I will not bother you again. _

_Jesse St James_

* * *

Rachel could not define what she was feeling when she started reading his letter. At first she was irate at him for thinking that she would make him tabloid fodder. He was all pride and insolence; his sense of self importance too strong to attempt to even understand it. But as she kept reading, she became astonished and horrified by his account of Finn's actions. She wished to discredit it entirely, repeatedly exclaiming, "This cannot be, it's nothing but a lie!". She hastily put the letter back into the envelope and left the park, but after a while she read the letter again, and as she read over and over Jesse's story of his relationship with Finn, it hit her. Maybe if she found out who played the part of Tony in the high school production, she would know who was telling the truth.

She Googled the information as soon as she got home, and after a short search she realized that Jesse was probably telling the truth. That, and the fact that she could easily corroborate Jesse's story with Quinn, were enough to make her think and reconsider certain events. She recognized that she had made a big mistake in judging Jesse so severely, and in trusting Finn so straightforwardly.

She immediately texted Quinn.

____

_We need to talk._

* * *

**Thanks to Original Groffette for her wonderful beta and be sure to check out "Sucker Love", based on Cruel Intentions. Please leave a review and let me know if you are liking this so far! Reviews are love!**


	10. Chapter 10

CHAPTER 10

Rachel didn't quite like the girl that was staring back at her. It wasn't because of the short bob she had been sporting lately. It was something in the girl's eyes, they seemed haunted, and she just couldn't recognize herself in her reflection. There was too much anger, frustration, guilt and an eerie sense that she had somehow messed up beyond repair. She closed her eyes but the tears were now falling freely, and she slowly collapsed in the bedroom floor, like a building imploding.

After a good cry that seemed to last for hours but didn't, she just sat there, the soup of emotions that had made her chest heavy gone to her head. Rachel didn't know what to think, her thoughts scrambled in her mind. That which she thought was right, had been proven wrong. She never considered herself a poor judge of character, if anything, she used to pride herself in the fact that she could see through people, their intentions and pretences. How wrong she had been! She had let her prejudice for Jesse blind her to Finn's true character. In retrospect, there were subtle hints in Finn's behavior that should have alerted her to his deception, like how he tended to look at other girls when he was talking to her, or how close he had gotten lately with Santana. But since she had been so partial to him, she subconsciously chose to overlook these hints, as if they didn't exist.

And Jesse. She never used to give him a second thought: her mind was made up to either taunt him or simply ignore him. But now she couldn't stop thinking about him. She felt flattered that an artist of Jesse's calibre was interested in her, so much as to tell her that he loved her. While she was teasing and mocking him, he had been falling in love with her. But even in his declaration of love he had been arrogant and conceited. Her self-pride was something she couldn't overcome that easily, not even to be with someone like him. That he thought going out with her would turn him into tabloid fodder just because her dads were gay, was preposterous. And the fangirl comment hadn't escaped her either. She stood up and sat on her bed, feeling suddenly tired.

The state of Rachel's mind was such that she wished she could just let it all out and go back to relaxing and focusing on the most important thing going on in her life at the moment: the next day would be the opening night of her first stellar performance. She needed to be calm and confident, and yet she felt more confused than she had ever been in her whole life. But comfort soon arrived in the form of her best friend, who let herself into her room.

She simply stated "Rachel", like she knew what her friend was going through. She thought she had found out about Finn, though she had no idea of what had happened with Jesse.

As the two friends sat down on the terrace with some tea, Rachel let it all out: Jesse's sudden and inept declaration of love the night before, the letter she had received that morning. Quinn was as surprised as Rachel had been by the fact that Jesse was in love with her, and about the truth of Finn's character.

"It was so hard for me to hide that from you, you know had bad I am at lying, which was why you couldn't catch me yesterday, I was evading you the whole time! Ever since I saw the paper, I knew you would grill me, and I had promised Jesse, for your own good, not to tell you anything."

Quinn continued with her explanation of what had transpired the day of the fight.

"Finn was awful, he is like Jekyll and Hyde, in front of you he was all sweetness, but then he spoke to us full of venom and disdain. I'll never forget how he started to insult us, out of the blue, without any provocation. 'Well, well, if it isn't the Brady fucking Bunch here!' Then he started to incite Jesse, telling him that he had you first, implying that he had slept with you! I don't know how Jesse was able to remain so calm, even though the veins bulging out of his neck were clearly visible, he just asked Finn to leave. It wasn't until Finn tried to hit him that Jesse punched him squarely on the face. After Finn left, Jesse remained calm, and he told me that it was better if you didn't find out about what happened, since Finn was leaving for New York and he wouldn't be back for a while. He said that you needed to concentrate on opening night, not on all the drama surrounding Finn. Even then, he never said anything about what happened between them before; he just said that Finn wasn't someone who could be trusted."

Quinn let out an audible sigh.

"I knew Jesse liked you, I had told you so, but I never thought he was in love with you! I don't think Sam knew either, he would've told me something... Poor Jesse!"

"Poor Jesse? Quinn, did you not hear what I said about the way he declared his love, as if I was somehow inferior to him?" Rachel exclaimed dramatically.

"I know, but still, it must have been hard for him. And I know that it's hard for you too, and I'm completely on your side! But I still feel sorry for Jesse!"

"Quinn, you're way too nice for your own good! Still, I don't know what's going to happen when we see each other again. "

"Oh God Rachel, amidst all of this drama I forgot to tell you! Jesse is leaving for New York this afternoon; apparently there was an urgent matter he needed to take care of. So don't worry about it now, you'll have plenty of time to figure it out!"

Rachel felt a tightening in her chest, had she been a fool by sending Jesse off like that? There was no way his proud self would forget that, he'd probably never even look at her again.

"Oh, well..."

Their conversation was interrupted by a very agitated Mercedes.

"What is wrong with you two, I've been looking for you like a crazy person! I texted you both a thousand times, only to find both your phones on the kitchen counter! Haven't you heard, we need to go to the theater now, something happened!"

"What, what?" exclaimed Rachel impatiently.

"I don't know, Andrew texted everyone to meet at theater like twenty minutes ago! Puck already left, but I wanted to get you girls! Get off your asses now, let's go!"

* * *

Rachel was heartbroken. _What are the odds of something like this happening…_ Their so awaited opening night had been postponed for a month. There had been a small fire in the electrical room of the theater, and the fire department had closed the venue until a complete rewiring of the place had been done. It was supposed to take only two to three weeks, but the director decided to postpone it for a month to make sure it was all taken care of and no further postponements were necessary.

"_Think of this as a premature vacation. Take three weeks off, travel, rest, whatever, but you need to be back on the 27th, we need at least seven days of rehearsal before the opening."_

And that was that. What was she supposed to do? Her mother was getting there that same night, and her dads would be leaving in a few days. Quinn, Mercedes and Puck were not down at all, they were actually quite relieved that they were getting a break before starting. They immediately made plans to leave with Sam to the countryside: they would visit a few villages before settling in Lincolnshire in Jesse's house.

They were all discussing the trip at a Notting Hill pub while waiting for Rachel's dads.

"Jesse has a house there?" _There were so many things about Jesse that I don't know, and probably never will._

"Yes" Sam replied "It's a very nice house, it's an inheritance of his maternal grandmother. Jesse always talks about spending many summers there playing in the fields and in the nearby lake. You're coming with us, right?"

"No, I can't, remember my dads are leaving and my mother is already on a plane, at least I need to be with her!"

Her friends told her that she could bring her mother, but Rachel insisted that she would not impose her mother upon them. In truth, Rachel just didn't want to stay at Jesse's house, even though she was assured that he was in New York. Jesse St James was something she needed to get off her system; she just wanted to get over that unpleasant chapter.

Rachel's dads left the next day, not before making arrangements to return prior to the opening night. Her friends also left, but she was grateful that she would get to spend some quality time with her mom.

* * *

Nestled in the Lincolnshire countryside, Stamford was a direct contrast to the hustle and bustle of London. The historic buildings and quaint nature of the market town was a welcome relief for the _Chicago_ cast. Having left the train station and wandered aimlessly for a while with their luggage, taking in the little shops and cafes, they eventually admitted defeat and asked for directions. They could have asked anyone in the street for directions to Pemberley House; all the locals had at one time or another stood at the gates and stared longingly at the pile at the top of the driveway. They eventually found their way to the house and for a moment they were all dumbstruck; this wasn't just a house; it was an English mansion.

The house may have looked like a Constable painting from the outside, but on the inside it had all modern amenities- games room, home cinema and a pool. The girls spent the first few days lounging by the pool, while the boys stayed up until all hours playing on the various consoles in the games room. Soon, they realized that something was missing from their holiday- Rachel.

Shelby Corcoran had visited London many times before, and while she was happy to be there with her daughter, she yearned to experience 'real' England. She had grown tired of the stale air of the Tube and the constant crowds; as an impatient woman she detested that she had to queue for _everything_ when she was in London. So when she overheard her daughter on the phone, talking about a the countryside, she knew it was the answer to her prayers. She began with gentle enquiries about where her friends had gone, and encouraged Rachel to Google Stamford. She could see the interest in Rachel's eyes when she read about the history of the town and saw photos of Burghley House, the stately home situated there. After a few more telephone calls from her friends, Shelby could see that Rachel was beginning to crave Stamford.

She asked Rachel about the owner of the house but she did not tell her anything about what had happened with Jesse, other than he was Sam's friend and that she knew him.

"He was very arrogant at first, but once I got to know him, he's okay, although he mostly keeps to himself."

Shelby knew her daughter very well, enough to know that there was something more to that boy than what her daughter was telling, but she also knew that Rachel would tell her all about it when she was ready, so she never pushed the subject.

After much begging and harassing from Quinn and Mercedes, Rachel finally agreed to visit; Quinn had assured her that Jesse was still in New York and would not get there for a week or so.

Rachel and Shelby rented a car, and after doing some sightseeing, they finally made it. When they arrived at Pemberley House and took in the ivy climbing the stone walls and the huge bay windows, Rachel felt a weight ease from her shoulders, all of the hesitance she had been harbouring melted away. Maybe this would be the place she could begin to forget the devastation of the last few weeks.

* * *

_**Many thanks to Original Groffete for all her help with this chapter and for betaing it even though it had been drafted on an iPad! And thanks for all of your reviews, they really make my day, so keep them coming! You know that the next chapter will be good, when they meet again, so make me update faster! ; )**_


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Jesse St James was the kind of guy who didn't let the words or actions of others hurt him. He learned early on that holding on to bitterness was not worth the trouble. So he took hurtful words and used them to mostly to his advantage, thinking of them as constructive criticism, and only dismissed those which didn't serve him any purpose. He was familiar with the fickleness of both the entertainment business and of human nature itself, so he tried his best not to take things personally.

There were a few exceptions, times in which he was deeply upset, in which the actions of others did leave him hurt and distressed. The last time Jesse could recall feeling like that was when he discovered Finn's betrayal, but even then he did not hold a grudge for long; he knew that the best way to deal with someone like Finn was from a distance.

But what he felt then did not compare to what he was feeling now, after his last conversation with Rachel Berry: he simply did not know how to manage the devastation he felt. He thought escaping for a few days to New York could serve as a distraction from her, but he never thought Rachel would travel along with him, never leaving his mind for an instant.

Her words had cut him deeply, and every time he remembered the things she had told him, it was like adding salt to open wounds. No matter what he did, he could not get her voice out his head, the despise in her voice burrowing in his brain like a drill.

"_You could not have declared your feelings in any possible way that would've tempt me to have anything to do with you. From the moment I met you, your manners, your arrogance, your conceit and your selfish disdain of the feelings of others were enough for me to know that you were the last guy on earth I would want anything to do with. I don't want your friendship, and I certainly don't care for your love."_

It was hard for him to understand and process the powerlessness he experienced when it came to her. Everything about Rachel was different, agonizing, unfamiliar. He'd never felt like that before, and the feelings that she stirred inside of him both unsettled and fascinated him. There were no in betweens with Rachel; she was a force of nature washing over him, leaving him helpless at her will. For all intents and purposes, she was the star and he the hopeless fanboy, dreaming of the impossible.

When he left her that night, after opening his heart to her only to have it trampled over, he felt like the biggest fool, her words still stinging. _What could have possessed me to do such a stupid thing, was I fucking blind? Why couldn't I see she never felt anything for me, why was I so stubborn?  
_  
His eyes brimming with angry, shameful tears, he took a shower as soon as he got home, as if the hot water could wash her off him. He stayed under the spray of water so long, he didn't realize the water had turned ice cold and he was shivering.

After drying off, he felt somewhat better, his mind clearer. He recalled her exact words: _"And if you don't mind, may I ask why you chose to so blatantly insult me by telling me that you loved me against your will, against your reason, and even against your character? Wasn't this enough excuse for rudeness, if I even was rude? But I have other reasons. I know all about your fight with Finn concerning your stupid plan to seduce me, and how you consider me an easy prey. What would tempt me to accept or even give an opportunity to someone that wishes to hurt me and possibly tarnish my reputation just to prove that he is better than his former best friend?"_

__A wave of realization hit him, he had indeed insulted her, his honesty had come out brutally, his manner condescending. There was no doubt in his mind that he still loved her, and realizing that his own words had hurt his beloved pained him even more. But there were things that needed to become clear, he could not let her think that Finn's version of what had happened between them was the truth. If he did, she would probably end up being hurt by Finn, and he couldn't let that happen. Even if she didn't share his feelings, he could not imagine letting her fall into Finns vicious games.

So he decided he would write her a letter, explaining certain events not only to somehow defend himself, but to also protect her against Finn. Initially he thought of writing an e-mail, but then he thought it was too impersonal, too easy to delete without reading, so he decided to write an old fashioned letter. He felt the weight in his chest lift a bit after he handed her the letter. He wasn't expecting an answer, he knew he would be lucky if she even took the trouble of reading the letter.

Those days in New York only served to deepen his feelings for her. He had everything he could ever need, but not what he wanted the most. After attending to some business matters, he decided to go back to the UK, he would do anything to win her heart. He'd heard from Sam about the postponement of her show, but as far as he knew she wasn't going with her friends to his country house, where he planned on stopping for a few days before heading back to London. Little did he know, destiny had other plans for them.

* * *

Rachel was taken aback every time she turned a corner inside of Jesse's house, the place was truly magnificent. Quinn was giving her and Shelby a tour of the house. The home cinema was amazing, its walls covered with framed with autographed playbills and movies posters, everything from "Funny Girl" to the "Chicago" movie. The music room had a grand piano, as well as other instruments, and a splendid view of the lake. The halls of the second floor, where most of the bedrooms were located, were full of family pictures and paintings. Seeing Jesse with Tina and his parents and grandparents made Rachel feel warm inside, they looked very happy. _How sad must it be to lose both your parents and grandparents…_

As soon as Rachel had a moment alone with Quinn she told her:

"I can't stay here Quinn, not after what happened with Jesse, I just can't come and stay in this beautiful house and pretend nothing happened, you know I can't. We'll leave and stay at a hotel in town, we can still hang out but I just can't stay here.."

Quinn knew her friend was right, she would do the same thing. Still, she convinced Rachel to stay until after dinner.

After catching up with the girls and hanging by the pool, Rachel thought she would take a walk around the grounds, Quinn had told her about some beautiful hiking trails that led to the lake. As she walked through the woods, Rachel felt her lungs fill with fresh air, and for the first time in a while she felt completely at peace, happy and relaxed. She smiled as she closed her eyes and looked at the sky, letting the sun warm her skin and brighten her mood. She sighed in content as she took in the beautiful nature around her. And that's when she saw him: Jesse St James was walking towards her.

"Rachel?"

* * *

**As always, thanks to Original Groffette for her wonderful beta! Lack of reviews make me slow, that's why I didn't update sooner, I barely got reviews for the last chapter! So write a short review if you like it, and also if you didn't, let me know what needs improvement! : ) I won't take it personal!**


	12. Chapter 12

**CHAPTER 12**

As soon as the plane landed in London's Heathrow, Jesse felt better. He had called Sam and left a message letting him know he would join them in Stamford, but Sam hadn't called him back. Jesse didn't really care, he was in a good mood, and he had not felt like that in a while. He couldn't pinpoint what exactly had brightened his mood, he just felt good, alive.

The car that had been waiting for him at the airport took him straight to Stamford. He loved that place, his fondest childhood memories had taken place at Pemberley. He remembered cuddling with his mom by the fire while she told them a story, or the sweet smell surrounding his grandma after baking mince pies. He smiled at the happy memories, and asked the driver to leave him near the lake; he wanted to go for a swim before getting to the house. He hadn't taken a swim in the lake in a long time, and even though he didn't even have the proper attire for swimming, he didn't care; the water seemed irresistible that particular afternoon. Jesse took off his shoes, and his jacket and shirt. He debated whether he should keep his jeans on, but decided to take them off as well, since there was no one around. After swimming for a long while, he felt reinvigorated and just plain happy as he started to walk to the house, carrying his clothes and shoes. He had been admiring the trees and the grounds in general when he came face to face with the most beautiful creature he'd ever laid his eyes on that side of the woods: Rachel Berry. He saw her before she saw him, and like a fool, the clothes that he'd been carrying fell out of his hands as he said her name out loud.  
"Rachel"...

* * *

When she heard Jesse's voice call out her name, Rachel thought she was going to die, all the relaxation and contentment she had been feeling vanishing instantaneously while her heart stopped beating, or so she thought. She felt mortified, beyond embarrassed, and she just wished the earth would open and swallow her whole right then and there. A thousand thoughts of regret raced through her brain in a split second.

"Hi" he said sheepishly, effectively interrupting her derailed train of thought.

Right before her stood a very wet Jesse St James, clad only in very wet gray boxer shorts that clung to him in all the wrong (or oh-so-right) places. Rachel had never seen Jesse like that, she knew that he was in good shape, but she never imagined he would be so well-toned. His arms were muscular and strong, his chest wide and defined, his abs perfect.

"I hope you're doing fine"

His words snapped her out her reverie; she tore her eyes from his wet body and looked up at his face.

"Hi" was all she managed to say back, as she felt a tsunami of mortification impeding her voice from coming out. She had to struggle to find her voice again.

"I'm fine. How are you?"

He nervously pushed his wet hair back; smiling at her while he picked the clothes he had just dropped.

"I just got back from…"

"I'm sorry Jesse, I'm so sorry!" she interrupted him, visibly affected. He frowned and looked at her confused.

"I didn't know you'd be here, they told me you were in New York. I wouldn't have dared come here if I knew you'd be back, I'm so sorry!"

Jesse didn't know what to tell her. He didn't know if she was embarrassed or just plain repulsed by his presence.

"I'm so sorry, I'll be leaving immediately." She said while turning around and sprinting away.

"Rachel!" Jesse started to run after her, but then he remembered he was almost naked. He took his wet boxer shorts off and put on his jeans and shirt, and ran towards the house, he knew a shortcut. He wasn't about to let her escape so easily.

* * *

She didn't know where to go, suddenly lost, her mind blank. _What will he think of me? Oh God…._

She looked up and saw the house at a distance, and had started walking towards it when she felt her cell phone vibrating. It was Quinn.

"Rachel? Can you come back here?"

"I know, Quinn, I just saw him."

"I didn't know he was coming back, we're as surprised as you are! Where did you see him?"

"By the lake, with no clothes."

"What? Rachel, you were naked?"

"No, he was! Well, he was wearing boxer shorts, but he might as well have been naked… Oh Quinn, I'm so embarrassed! I just stood there not knowing what to say, I feel so terrible! Please tell my mom to put everything back in the car, we have to leave at once, I'll be there shortly!" Rachel ended the call in haste, she had no time to waste, and the sooner she left that place, the better. She was expecting her mom to be waiting for her by the car, maybe with Quinn by her side, but she never expected to see her mom laughing wholeheartedly at something that Jesse was telling her.

"Hey honey, are you all right?" Shelby said while extending an arm to her daughter.

Rachel managed a little smile.

"Yes, are you ready?" was all that Rachel could muster.

"You want to leave now?" Shelby asked confused.

"Well, yes…"

Jesse interrupted her.

"No, you can't leave! There is plenty of room here for you, and your friends are here. Please stay, you're going to love it here, you will love Stamford!"

Rachel was caught in a conundrum, she really wanted to go, but she wasn't about to make a scene by storming off. And she would not let her inner turmoil get the best of her; she was an actress, for crying out loud.

Quinn went to her side, and took Rachel's hands in hers. "You're staying, right?"

Shelby gave her the "we'll talk about this later" look that Rachel knew so well and nodded, so apparently she had no other option but to stay at Jesse's house.

As Quinn and Shelby got back into the house, Rachel took the opportunity to talk to Jesse.

"Jesse, do you have a minute?"

He smiled at her before replying:

"Sure, come on, let's take a walk".

Rachel felt odd walking by his side, yet it was strangely familiar. They walked for a while without talking. Rachel broke the ice.

"Jesse, I just need you to know that I didn't know you were coming here, I was assured that you were in New York, I would have never come if I knew, you know, after all that happened…"

Jesse could see that Rachel was struggling for words, and he did not want her to feel like that. They kept on walking.

"Rachel, no one knew I was coming, I didn't even know I was coming! It was a last minute decision. I knew that Sam and Quinn and the guys would be here, so I decided to join them. I hope my sudden appearance is not making you uncomfortable…"

Jesse was worried that she may be uncomfortable because he was back at his own house? She felt her embarrassment was getting out of hand and she needed to put an end to what could be catalogued as the most awkward conversation of her life.

"Of course not, Jesse, I was just worried that YOU might be uncomfortable coming to your country house to rest and relax only to find me here!"

He gave her a genuinely confused look.

"But I'm so glad that you're here! It was quite a surprise, but in a good sense. I know it's strange to tell you this now, but I honestly hope we can be friends."

She smiled at him as she stopped walking and held out her hand to him.

"Okay, of course we can be friends."

He shook her hand and smiled back at her, and they kept on walking, both feeling suddenly comfortable with each other for the first time.

Rachel never thought she would have a good time during her stay at Pemberley.

* * *

Having survived the awkwardness of the first few hours, she felt more and more at ease. They had all sat down for dinner at a big table in a deck overlooking the lake, and after sharing food and wine and stories, Puck went to get his guitar, and they all ended up singing. It was a perfect evening.

It was almost midnight when her mom asked her to walk with her to the room where they were staying. Once inside, Shelby sat on the bed and looking at Rachel, she just said: "Spill it."

Rachel loved how straight her mom could be, she knew she had inherited most of her drama queen traits from her dads. She explained everything to her mom, who listened to her daughter entranced, and when Rachel finished her account, Shelby wiped a tear from her cheek.

"Poor kid, Rachel! I think he really likes you."

"I think he thought he liked me, that is until I told him off in the worst possible way! I was so blind, so prejudiced!"

"No, Rachel, I can tell he's still interested. There's something in the way he looks at you…"

"Come on, mom, I think you might have had a little too much wine!"

"That I certainly did, and now I need to rest! Go ahead, have fun with your friends, the night is still young!" She kissed her daughter and practically pushed her out of the room.

When Rachel went back to the deck, she found that everyone had mellowed down. Quinn and Sam were almost asleep on one of the lounge chairs, and Jesse was looking at the lake.

"Where's everyone?" Rachel asked.

Jesse smiled at her before telling her that Puck and Mercedes were at the game room.

"Did you know that I have a collection of tapings of original Broadway plays?"

Now he had all of her attention.

"What do you mean by original tapings?"

"Come with me, I'll show you."

When they got to the home cinema, Jesse took Rachel to a small adjacent room, with shelves filled with boxes of 8 mm, beta and VHS cassettes.

He took out one of the older boxes and handed it to her.

"Funny Girl, 1964. Oh my God Jesse, is this the real thing?" She said while putting a hand to her chest, as if she had just found the Holy Grail.

"Yup. I had them all transferred to DVD's. Care to see one now?"

Rachel was giddy, like a kid in a candy store.

They shared a love seat in the middle of the room. At first they just watched the musical, and after a while Rachel started humming one of the songs. He couldn't keep her eyes off her, but she barely noticed, she was intently watching the big screen in front of her. Then she started singing, almost whispering, but when Jesse joined her she sang her heart out, their voices in perfect harmony over the original song. They sang together most of the songs. By the time it was over, it was very late, and Rachel couldn't stifle a yawn.

"That was so amazing. Could we watch another one tomorrow, please?" she asked him with sleepy eyes while he was walking her back to her room.

"Of course, anytime you want."

She gave him a wide smile before placing a quick kiss on his cheek.

"Thank you, Jesse, can't wait for tomorrow! Goodnight!" She gave him one last smile before going into her room.

As Jesse left to his own room, he placed a hand to his cheek, where Rachel's lips had been seconds ago. He couldn't wait for the next day either. He did not know what had changed between them, but things were definitely starting to look up!

* * *

**Thanks to the amazing Original Groffette for betaing this chapter even though she's up to her neck with work and her own amazing story "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart".**

**And thanks to all of you for your reviews, story alerts and favorites. I do intend to change the original plot a little and include some St Berry love in the next chapter, so be nice and review and make me update faster! Reviews are love!**


	13. Chapter 13

The first night that Rachel spent at Pemberley turned out to be quite a long night. She couldn't sleep, her mind flooding with the day's events: she never imagined, not in her wildest dreams, that Jesse would be so kind to her after all that had happened between them. After tossing and turning for a long time, striving for some sleep without success, she decided to go to the kitchen to try to get some chamomile or any other calming tea. The hallway was dark, but she noticed as she went past the home cinema that the TV was on, so she ventured in only to find Jesse watching late night TV. He had a blanket over him and was a little startled when he saw her.

"Rachel, hey..." He moved over to the side so that she could sit beside him.

"Couldn't sleep..." was all she offered before sitting next to him and staring at the TV. After a while she started to feel sleepy, so as if it were the most natural thing in the world, she scooted next to him and put her head on his shoulder. He put an arm around her and pulled her closer and they just kept watching TV. She didn't remember the moment she fell asleep, but when she woke up, she was somehow lying on top of him in the loveseat. She could feel his chest slowly rising and falling, and she felt very peaceful, as if that what the place where she needed to be right then. He smelled good and clean, like sandalwood soap. She moved ever so lightly and looked at him, his lashes were very long, his skin smooth, his face beautiful. Not just very handsome, not just very good looking, his face was incredibly beautiful: like a marble bust of a Greek god, his face was perfectly chiseled. His mouth was slightly open, and after a while she couldn't resist but put her hand on the side of his face, and very delicately touched his hair, which felt soft and smooth between her fingers. She wasn't surprised when he opened his eyes, and they just stayed there looking at each other, words were not necessary. She could feel her heart beating faster as he placed his own hand on the side of her face, his fingers buried in her hair, his thumb slightly caressing her cheek. She closed her eyes and leaned into his hand, relishing his touch, and when she opened them he was looking at her very seriously, his eyes alternating between her eyes and her lips, as if he wanted to kiss her but didn't have the nerve to do so. Rachel didn't know what possessed her to lean down into him, their lips touching briefly, before pulling back and looking at him. She could see his eyes were still closed, and she leaned once more into him, and placed another small kiss on his lips, and then another, and another, until he moved his hand to the back of her head and pulled her closer, kissing her deeply. When his tongue met hers, Rachel swore she could see fireworks, her whole world exploding because of that kiss, because HE was kissing her. 'Perfection' was the only word she could think of, it was just a perfect kiss. The kiss grew more passionate, their mouths hungrily exploring each other, and Rachel could feel his hardness in her stomach, and she instinctively ground into him, but felt nothing. She ground herself against him again feeling nothing, and when she opened her eyes frustration settled in: she discovered Jesse wasn't really kissing her, and she wasn't on top of him, she was still in her room and her mother was sleeping on the bed next to hers. She sat on her bed, her heart thumping in her chest, her dream had been so real... She put her hand to her lips, remembering that perfect kiss, before falling back again onto the bed and putting a pillow over her head. She thought about her dream again, maybe if she thought about it long enough she would dream it again...

* * *

Jesse felt something odd yet wonderful when he woke up, a feeling of well being, peace, bliss... _Is this love?_ He couldn't really tell, it was the first time in his life that he felt like that, his life lately a magnificent succession of firsts: first time he felt so conflicted about something, first time he felt so clear. First time he felt there was more to life than the call of the stage. First time he felt jealous, and it was all courtesy of letting hurricane Rachel Berry into his life. _If she only knew the effect she has on me... _He just knew that he felt alive, inspired, and he wondered if she felt even a fraction of what he was feeling, a feeling which must be what songwriters and poets wrote about, a feeling so powerful it left him helpless and empowered at the same time. The power of love. The power of love... It was cheesy and wonderful and it made him smile incessantly like an idiot.

He knew he had to stop smiling like that because he didn't want to chase her away seeming too eager to reaffirm his affections. He needed to stay cool and act nonchalant. He could not let her or anyone see how happy he truly was, not yet anyway.

It was not until he got into the kitchen downstairs that he noticed that everyone was still sleeping. He poured himself some coffee and went outside to the deck overlooking the lake. It was a beautiful morning and he was enjoying being outdoors so much, he decided to wake up the guys and get going.

* * *

Quinn and Rachel had decided to go hiking while the girls and Shelby lounged by the pool. They had not gone far when Quinn couldn't hold herself any longer.

"So, you stayed up with Jesse last night…"

Rachel kept walking as if Quinn wasn't talking to her, looking confused.

"Rachel? Rachel! What's wrong with you, it's not like you to be so distracted!"

Rachel gave her friend a little smile, she had to recognize the entire morning had gone by in a haze; all she could think about was that dream, how good it had felt…

"I'm so sorry, I was just thinking of a weird dream I had last night. What were you saying?"

"Nothing important, I just wanted to know if you were okay being alone with Jesse last night."

Rachel's eyes lit up as she recounted to Quinn what had taken place the night before, and Quinn was happy that Rachel and Jesse were finally getting along, they were so much alike that Quinn wondered how they had managed to mess up the first time they met.

They were nearing the house on their way back when Quinn noted that Rachel had become distracted again.

"Tell me about that dream and get it out of your system already!"

Rachel blushed, she didn't want to tell Quinn about her dream and get her psyched up about a possible relationship with Jesse. After all, he had been too kind just by being nice to her after all she said to him, and she was sure there was no ulterior motive in his behavior, he was just being nice and polite.

"Oh, it was nothing important… I was just thinking about something I read right before going to bed last night. It was an article about what is a perfect kiss. How do you define a perfect kiss?" She asked, trying to change the subject.

"A perfect kiss? Hmmmmm….. I don't know, I guess that it's just perfect when you really care about the other person…"

"No, no, no, not like that. You could have great kisses with someone you care about, but it doesn't necessarily mean they're perfect kisses. I think a perfect kiss happens when someone kisses exactly the way you do. It is perfect, not faster, not slower, not sloppier, just perfect. Have you ever had one of those?"

Quinn thought for a while before she answered. They were very close to the house already.

"Believe it or not, I think it was my first kiss. I was thirteen, his name was Nick, and we kissed under the bleachers at school." She laughed and brought a hand to her face and smiled absentmindedly at the long lost memory. "He was a year older than I was, already a freshman in high school, and he was a football player. He was an ass, rude and obnoxious, but he kissed so good… I remember we used to kiss for ages! I thought that all kisses were supposed to be like that, but I was so disappointed at the next guy!"

She added laughing. "I know what you mean, I really, really like Sam, and I love kissing him, it is great, but he… he… His mouth is kind of… big?"

Both girls were laughing out loud now as they made their way into the pool. When they got there, everyone wanted to know what they were laughing about, but since the boys were back from fishing neither of them offered much information on their conversation.

"Just girl talk…" Quinn said before going to Sam and hugging him, while Rachel sat on a lounge chair next to her mom.

The boys and Mercedes were playing volleyball in the pool, and Jesse smiled at her when their eyes finally met. He was laughing and having fun with the boys, and Rachel had never seen that side of him, she was used to seeing him serious and stern most of the time. She was secretly enjoying watching him shirtless again, his hair wet and slicked back, his smile beautiful… He was smiling a lot and looked happy, and it was making her even more confused. Not so long ago she thought he was a pretentious asshole that had insulted her and told her he was in love with her just to get into her pants and make Finn jealous, how mistaken had she been! His letter helped her see through Finn Hudson, but the little time she had spent with Jesse was enough for her to know that he was authentic, that he wasn't pretending to be nice and that he probably still liked her a little.

"Berry, get over here!" Noah hollered, effectively interrupting her mental ramblings.

Rachel complied, taking off her clothes and jumping into the pool. They only had a few days left before rehearsals started again, and she was going to make the most of it.

Jesse was having a good day, but it got much better when he saw her. The mere sight of her was enough to make him shiver. She was wearing white shorts with a navy blue t-shirt, and a white headband that swept back her short hair off her face, she looked lovely. He felt his heart skip a beat when he saw her, he was ecstatic too see her, but he tried his best to appear nonchalant and just keep playing. Then she stood up, took off her shirt and shorts to reveal a navy blue bikini and turned back to adjust the bottom, and Jesse almost swallowed water as he admired her long, toned legs and behind. He had to look down to avoid his body from acting up. Sure, he was madly in love with her, but until then he hadn't really thought about her that way: she was a sex goddess and he had never wanted to fuck anyone as bad as he wanted her. It was as if he was watching everything in slow motion, the way she licked her lips when she took off her hair band, the way she swayed towards the pool. He quickly dipped his head into the water, maybe that would distract him and prevent the raging hard on in his pants from showing.

Once she got in the water, she chatted for a while with Mercedes, and when he felt that he was in control of his body he joined them.

* * *

"I had no idea Ewan McGregor could sing," Jesse mused as they watched Moulin Rouge in the cinema room.

It was late, the rest of his house guests had gone to bed, but he had been eager to spend some time with Rachel alone. From the moment he had seen her in her bikini, he could not keep the impure thoughts from invading his mind. He glanced over at her; her gaze was fixed on the screen as Ewan and Nicole went through the motions. Her lips were caught in a half-smile, and she nibbled her lower lip sporadically. His eyes dropped, taking in her legs stretched out on the sofa. He imagined how her skin would feel if he just reached out and ran his hand up her thigh. He shifted on the sofa as he felt himself respond. _Damn._

"Are you ok?" she asked.

"Yeah, fine," he said dismissively, hoping she wouldn't look too closely at him.

He needn't have worried; she pointed at the screen excitedly. "This is my favorite part of the whole movie," she cried, "I must have watched this scene a hundred times; I know it word for word,"

Jesse hit the pause button, "Really? Wanna put that to the test?"

She looked at him uncertainly. "What are you talking about?"

"Come on, you take Satine and I'll be Christian," he stood and held out his hand to her.

She looked from his face to his hand and hesitated. Then she slid her fingers between his and allowed him to pull her to her feet.

"Wait! No please wait!" he called desperately, so in character that it startled Rachel slightly.

She turned from him and sighed, becoming Satine. Then she turned and looked at him.

"Before, when you thought I was the Duke," Jesse said uncertainly, perfectly recreating Christian's facial expressions, "You said that you loved me, and I-I wondered if-"

"It was just an act," she said haughtily.

"Yes," he said hurriedly.

"Of course,"

He looked down and fiddled with his fingers. "It just felt real,"

She looked at him sadly, remorsefully. "Christian," she began as she took slow steps towards him, "I'm a courtesan, I am paid to make men believe what they want to believe,"

"Yes," he whispered, never taking his eyes from hers. Then he smiled. "It's silly of me to think that you could fall in love with someone like me,"

The words rang true and Rachel broke character for a fleeting moment, her heart pounding. She recovered quickly. "I can't fall in love with anyone,"

"You can't fall in love?" he said incredulously, "But a life without love, that's terrible!"

"No, being on the street, that's terrible!" she countered.

"No!", he interjected, "Love is like oxygen!"

"What?" she cried.

"Love is a many splendored thing, love lifts us up where we belong, all you need is love!"

Rachel couldn't hide a smile as she knew what was coming. "Please, don't start that again,"

Jesse grinned at her as he began to sing. "All you need is love!" his voice was like silk.

"A girl has got to eat!" she cried.

"All you need is love!" Jesse sang. She loved the sound of if voice; it sent a shiver down her spine.

"She'll end up on the street!" she sighed.

"All you need is looooove!" he grinned at her and moved closer.

"Love is just a game," she sang and mirrored his smile.

They continued to sing, smiling as their voices harmonized, his voice intoxicating her. When Jesse moved his hand to her face and angled his lips towards her, her skin tingled and sent a rush of desire through her. She was grateful that the song required her to move away from him. As the song drew to a close, they wandered back towards each other.

"Just because I... will always love you..." Jesse moved painfully close to her as he sang.

Her heart skipped as she joined him in harmony. "Can't help loving... "

Jesse's lips were millimeters from hers. "...You..."

Rachel focused on finishing the song. "How wonderful life is,"

"Now you're in, the world..." they sang together.

Jesse looked at her. Her heart rate quickened considerably. "You're going to be bad for business,"

He looked from her eyes to her lips, his lips slightly open. She saw him close the narrow gap between them, and pulled back in panic. She could see the frustration in his eyes as he pressed his lips and closed his eyes, and for second she could have sworn she saw him grimace before he gave her a forced smile.

She quickly composed herself.

"Thank you Jesse, that was... I have... I have to..." She turned around and walked quickly towards the door.

She felt Jesse's hand in her arm.

"Rachel..."

She turned around, her acting face firmly in place.

"It's late, Jesse, I'm tired. Can we finish watching the movie tomorrow?"

"Sure... But I... I..."

Racket advantage of his hesitancy and interrupted him.

"Great then. Good night Jesse!"

She gave him a little smile and left.

When she got to her room, she stood behind the door. What was she doing? What was wrong with her? She could see that her mother was already asleep, so she quietly made her way into the bathroom. She leaned with both hands on the sink while she looking at her reflection, chastising herself for being such a fool. Jesse St James. _He makes me feel so… so…. alive?_

She could not stop the whirlwind of emotions overtaking her, and she put a hand on her chest dramatically even though she had no audience. She was standing in a bathroom at exactly 1:35 AM when she realized she was in love with Jesse, and that the universe would probably not give her another opportunity like that. Jesse St James wanted to kiss her, he probably still felt something for her, and she was throwing it all away for the second time. What was she expecting, that he would beg and grovel at her feet a third time? She felt the need to take action immediately; she needed to talk to him then, before she lost her nerve. _Third time's a charm. _

She went out into the hallway and walked to the theater, but it was dark and empty. She was not about to throw in the towel, not while she was so determined, so she walked to his room and was about to knock the door when Jesse suddenly opened the door, bringing them face to face.

"Rachel…" he whispered.

But Rachel put a hand over his lips, touching them delicately. She looked into his eyes, his gaze confused but full of emotion, his eyes telling her what his lips would not. She was so nervous then, as if she'd never been kissed. Her heart was beating fast, her chest filled with so much emotion that she was finding it hard to breathe. She could feel his sweet breath on her face, and she closed her eyes and placed a small kiss on the side of his face, close to his ear. She opened her eyes and saw that his were closed, his breathing now ragged, and she leaned once more and placed another kiss on his forehead, then on his cheek, then on the curve of his jaw. He opened his eyes and looked at her adoringly as she touched the side of her mouth, where he placed a soft kiss. She moved her head to the side offering him her neck, where he placed another kiss while he placed his arms around her. He pulled her closer before kissing her lips once, twice. He looked at her, but her eyes were closed as she placed her hands around the back of his head, and pulled him into another kiss, only this time he deepened it, and when their tongues met she buried her fingers in his hair and moaned slightly, which encouraged him to kiss her more passionately. Rachel felt her whole body become painfully alive, it was perfect, kissing Jesse was perfect. She'd never felt more complete than in that precise moment, between his arms.

Too bad the universe already had other plans for her.

* * *

**I'm so sorry for updating so late! I hope the fact that this was a long chapter made it up somehow! Thanks so much to my dear friend and beta Original Groffette for her input and for writing the "Moulin Rouge" scene! She rocks and so does her amazing ne story "A Tale of Two Starlets".**

**I'm so sad this story is ending….**

**Reviews are love!**


	14. Chapter 14

**Sorry for the lack of updates, I had been completely uninspired, but I guess the news that Jesse is coming back have been quite inspiring! Since I had not updated for a while, I'm including the last paragraphs of the previous chapters so that you fall back into the story's rythm.**

* * *

"It's late, Jesse, I'm tired. Can we finish watching the movie tomorrow?"

"Sure... But I... I..."

Racket advantage of his hesitancy and interrupted him.

"Great then. Good night Jesse!"

She gave him a little smile and left.

When she got to her room, she stood behind the door. What was she doing? What was wrong with her? She could see that her mother was already asleep, so she quietly made her way into the bathroom. She leaned with both hands on the sink while she looking at her reflection, chastising herself for being such a fool. Jesse St James. _He makes me feel so… so…. alive?_

She could not stop the whirlwind of emotions overtaking her, and she put a hand on her chest dramatically even though she had no audience. She was standing in a bathroom at exactly 1:35 AM when she realized she was in love with Jesse, and that the universe would probably not give her another opportunity like that. Jesse St James wanted to kiss her, he probably still felt something for her, and she was throwing it all away for the second time. What was she expecting, that he would beg and grovel at her feet a third time? She felt the need to take action immediately; she needed to talk to him then, before she lost her nerve. _Third time's a charm. _

She went out into the hallway and walked to the theater, but it was dark and empty. She was not about to throw in the towel, not while she was so determined, so she walked to his room and was about to knock the door when Jesse suddenly opened the door, bringing them face to face.

"Rachel…" he whispered.

But Rachel put a hand over his lips, touching them delicately. She looked into his eyes, his gaze confused but full of emotion, his eyes telling her what his lips would not. She was so nervous then, as if she'd never been kissed. Her heart was beating fast, her chest filled with so much emotion that she was finding it hard to breathe. She could feel his sweet breath on her face, and she closed her eyes and placed a small kiss on the side of his face, close to his ear. She opened her eyes and saw that his were closed, his breathing now ragged, and she leaned once more and placed another kiss on his forehead, then on his cheek, then on the curve of his jaw. He opened his eyes and looked at her adoringly as she touched the side of her mouth, where he placed a soft kiss. She moved her head to the side offering him her neck, where he placed another kiss while he placed his arms around her. He pulled her closer before kissing her lips once, twice. He looked at her, but her eyes were closed as she placed her hands around the back of his head, and pulled him into another kiss, only this time he deepened it, and when their tongues met she buried her fingers in his hair and moaned slightly, which encouraged him to kiss her more passionately. Rachel felt her whole body become painfully alive, it was perfect, kissing Jesse was perfect. She'd never felt more complete than in that precise moment, between his arms.

Too bad the universe already had other plans for her.

* * *

" _This cannot be real_…"

She was in his arms, his lips against hers, strong hands softly caressing her back, the oxygen in her lungs faltering. She had never felt like that, it was a brand new feeling, something she would never thought possible, did someone ever felt like that before? Nothing she had ever experienced could compare to what she was feeling then, a sense of alertness rousing every cell of her body… She thought her heart would burst out of her chest; the feelings kept getting only stronger the longer he kissed her.

Was she dreaming? For a brief moment she opened her eyes, it just couldn't be real, it had to be another dream... But the sight before her eyes, soft brown curls descending towards his closed eyelids and his beautiful long eyelashes almost touching hers... She could not help but close her eyes tightly as she furrowed her brow out of sheer emotion, not wanting the feeling to end, not wanting to wake up if she was indeed dreaming, and she deepened the kiss, her hands tangling in his hair.

Jesse was also in complete disbelief. Was he really kissing her? And was she really kissing him back? He knew that he loved her, but he never expected HER to feel that way, mere words could not describe the sensation of having HER in his arms, of having HER respond so him so avidly, so passionately... When she deepened the kiss, his response was immediate, his mouth and tongue hungrily devouring hers, his hands pulling her head impossibly closer to him, his whole body reacting almost violently.

Then they both heard the music, Cabaret's "Maybe This Time", and both thought it was a natural reaction to the new feelings washing over them: it was the perfect ending to a new beginning, of course music had to infiltrate in on the moment somehow, shouldn't it? But neither were expecting that song, didn't a kiss like that deserve a grand symphony, Mozart or Beethoven, or at least even Sondheim?

Then the music started anew, and he felt Rachel pull apart, her lips bruised and raw, her teeth glistening in the dark of the hallway as she smiled nervously and fumbled through her pocket reaching for her phone.

"Sorry..." She said sheepishly as she put her phone to her ear. Jesse was smiling, his own lips still burning, his body still achingly close to hers. It was all wondrous and new, yet it felt natural and normal, as if they had been together forever. He lifted his hand to her face, and his thumb stroked her cheek softly.

"Hello?" She answered cheerfully. Not realizing it was very late, almost 2:00 am."What? What are you saying? But when?"

Her smile transformed immediately into a worried expression, right before settling into an almost painful grimace.

"No, it's not possible! Yes we'll be there in the morning… But…. Okay, bye."

By the time she pressed the END button on her cell, her eyes had flooded with tears. She put her hands to her face and cried "Oh god..."

Jesse was very alarmed, what could have possibly happened that would leave Rachel in such a state?

"Rachel, please what happened? You are not well, come, sit down" He said as he guided her towards a seating area at the end of the hallway and helped her down to a chair.

"What happened, why are you like this?"

Rachel looked up at Jesse, he looked genuinely worried for her.

"The show... Our show… It has been cancelled..." She stated through quiet sobs while she buried her face once again in her hands.

He kneeled in front of her and pulled her into a tight embrace, knowing that she wasn't well enough to talk then.

They were interrupted by Quinn's agitated voice calling out.

"Rachel, oh god, did you hear..."

"But what happened? Is he okay, what's wrong?" Rachel said standing up.

"They said he's unavailable at the moment, but why?" answered Mercedes, who had joined the increasingly frantic crowd.

Sam had been awakened by the commotion, and he looked at Jesse questioningly, but Jesse only lifted his shoulders and mouthed "I have no idea" to his friend.

Enter Noah Puckerman, signaling everyone to be quiet with one hand while holding his cell phone on speaker with the other. Silence reigned immediately as everyone gathered around him.

"Andrew, you're on speaker. Tell us what happened." Andrew was the executive producer of the show. He didn't know that most of his actors were together, so he called them separately. It wasn't until Puck informed him they were at the same place that he decided to tell them what had happened, the reason why Karl, the show's executive director, would be unavailable indefinitely.

After a brief pause and what could be construed as a sigh on the other end of the phone, a voice finally rose from the tiny speaker.

"Okay, this is what I know: Karl decided to stay in London while the theater's wiring was fixed, but his wife and Mandy went to visit her family at the last minute in New York. Apparently Mandy fell very ill while there and was immediately hospitalized, she was put in intensive care with septicemia and fell into a coma."

Everyone gasped. Mandy was the director's only daughter, she loved to hang around the set and everyone loved her since she was very sweet.

"But is she alright?" Puckerman asked the voice at the other end.

"Yes, she's still hospitalized but she is better now. Apparently she had a clandestine abortion here in London right before leaving for New York, and even though she had been feeling ill she didn't tell her mom anything because she was terrified. Before falling into the coma she confessed who had fathered her child. She said he wanted nothing to do with her, gave her five hundred dollars and left. She could not find him, and the money he gave her wasn't nearly enough for her to get a legal abortion, and she didn't want to tell anyone, so she went to an underground clinic. Karl was about to board a flight to New York when his wife told what his daughter had said. He made a few calls to find out his whereabouts and found out he was back in London, so he left the airport and went to confront him and is now detained for attempted murder..."

The collective gasp of his listeners was louder now.

"But who is it? Who is the bastard who did this to poor Mandy?" enquired an already incensed Puck.

"It's one of the guys from _RENT_ over at the Wyndham, Finn Hudson..."

* * *

**Evil cliffhanger! Many thanks to Original Groffete for her beta and for being a great friend. And leave me a review! Reviews = Inspiration = Fast Updates**

**Hope you liked it!**


	15. Chapter 15

**Again, I'm including the ending of the previous chapter so that you remember where we're at!**

* * *

"Okay, this is what I know: Karl decided to stay in London while the theater's wiring was fixed, but his wife and Mandy went to visit her family at the last minute in New York. Apparently Mandy fell very ill while there and was immediately hospitalized, she was put in intensive care with septicemia and fell into a coma."

Everyone gasped. Mandy was the director's only daughter, she loved to hang around the set and everyone loved her since she was very sweet.

"But is she alright?" Puckerman asked the voice at the other end.

"Yes, she's still hospitalized but she is better now. Apparently she had a clandestine abortion here in London right before leaving for New York, and even though she had been feeling ill she didn't tell her mom anything because she was terrified. Before falling into the coma she confessed who had fathered her child. She said he wanted nothing to do with her, gave her five hundred dollars and left. She could not find him, and the money he gave her wasn't nearly enough for her to get a legal abortion, and she didn't want to tell anyone, so she went to an underground clinic. Karl was about to board a flight to New York when his wife told what his daughter had said. He made a few calls to find out his whereabouts and found out he was back in London, so he left the airport and went to confront him and is now detained for attempted murder..."

The collective gasp of his listeners was louder now.

"But who is it? Who is the bastard who did this to poor Mandy?" enquired an already incensed Puck.

"It's one of the guys from _RENT_ over at the Wyndham, Finn Hudson..."

* * *

The group's reaction to the news was immediate.

"What? Finn? I can't believe he could do something like this!" Quinn cried while her friend Rachel was too stunned to speak, the tears pouring down her face.

"What a mean asshole! He seemed so nice, who could've thought he'd turn out to be a hypocrite bastard..." Mercedes added with an attitude.

"Finn? Finn Hudson did this to Mandy? The bastard is lucky Karl didn't kill him, if it was up to me his body would be floating in the Thames by now!" grunted Puck while punching his right fist in the air, visibly irate now.

Sam turned to watch his best friend Jesse, whose face was flushed red with his jaw clenched tightly. Jesse could not believe what was happening, that Finn did something like that again. It was his fault, he should have exposed Finn a long time ago for what he truly was, but he thought that even Finn would have a something resembling a soul. Now he knew that he didn't, and that he needed to act immediately to try and diminish somehow the harm that Finn had done. _That thoughtless bastard, always thinking only of himself…_

Now silence reigned as everyone took in the dreadful news.

"Guys... Guys, are you there?" asked their producer Andrew on the speakerphone still in Puck's hand.

Jesse answered him first, causing everyone else to remain quiet.

"Hi Andrew, this is Jesse St James. Are you sure it was Finn Hudson who did this?"

"Jesse?" asked Andrew, probably confused as to why they were all together but too tired to even care, after all, Finn was Jesse's castmate. "Yeah, we're sure it was him. Finn's in the hospital right now, Karl beat him up pretty badly. But guys, just get here to London if you can and we'll meet in the morning to discuss this in depth, maybe there still something we can do..."

"There is nothing to be done." Rachel finally said. "There's nothing we can do that could solve this situation, it's too critical at this point to do anything..."

"We'll be there, Andrew, see you in a while." interrupted Puck while ending the call. "Let's concentrate right now on packing our stuff and getting ready to leave. If we leave in around two hours, we should be able to get back to London by eight."

"Is there anything we can do to help?" asked Sam.

"Do you know how to make coffee? It's a long drive back!" joked Puck half heartedly as he passed him and patted his shoulder, with Mercedes following him.

Sam nodded, and went to Quinn. He put an arm over her shoulders, walked her to her room and gently kissed her. "I'll see what I can do about that coffee..."

Jesse and Rachel were left alone once more in the hallway. Rachel forced a little smile through her tears and Jesse went over to her and held her tightly. She buried her head in his chest while he tenderly kissed the top of her head. For a moment Rachel felt she was exactly where she needed to be, but then reality hit her like a ton of bricks when they were once more interrupted, this time by the voice of her mother calling out to her from their room.

She pulled back from his embrace, even if doing so proved more difficult than she ever imagined, maybe because she sensed that it could be the last time she would be in his arms like that.

"I have to go..." She said, again trying to fake a smile that looked anything but.

"I know" he answered. He wanted to lean and kiss her once more, he wanted to be her knight in shining armor and protect her anyway he could, never letting her go, but there was little he could do right then, so he just kissed the top of her head once more.

"Bye Rachel..." was all he could say. He could not comfort her in any other way now, especially since he felt responsible for what had happened.

"I'm coming, Mom" Rachel answered her mom as she walked away from him, turning just once before entering her room to wave him goodbye, but he was already gone.

* * *

Rachel let her mom drive, and they drove for hours in silence, only occasionally interrupted by Shelby telling her everything would be okay. Usually Rachel couldn't be in a car without music, but right then she didn't feel like listening to anything, it felt like she was attending a funeral: her own. All of her hopes and dreams of being a star shattered, all the confidence she felt gone in the blink of an eye. She would go back home to audition, and she would be nothing more than a simple fangirl to him again. She had discovered what she knew all along, that he was the sun, and she merely a common moth, burning before long in his flames, their story ending abruptly before it could even begin. Tears of resignation escaped her eyes then and she cried silently. _"I'll never see him again..."_

The next couple of weeks went by in a haze. The Wyndham Theater, which as luck would have it was ready after a complete electrical rewiring, was ground zero. They would meet there every day to discuss recent developments and sometimes some of the cast would stay and rehearse their parts.

Rachel did not rehearse at all, she was too heartbroken to even get on the stage. She cried every day, mourning not only the imminent loss of her dreams but also losing Jesse. She had realized too late that she was in love with him, but she hadn't heard from him after that day in which he simply told her "_Bye Rachel_", his words burning through her memories every second, torturing her. The worst part was that she had to suffer in silence, there was no one she could talk to about what was going on with Jesse. Everyone thought she was sad because of the show, no one suspected she was also heartbroken. Her best friend Quinn was also very sad, and she did not want to make her feel uncomfortable since she was already in a serious relationship with Sam, Jesse's best friend. Rachel wanted to tell her mom, but she knew that the second she tapped into those feelings she would be in trouble, so she kept everything to herself: the best and the worst things that had ever happened to her.

The executive director of the London production of _Chicago_ was in prison, Finn Hudson was still in the hospital, and it wasn't long before the press got a hold on the juicy news and the entire story became tabloid fodder, each sensationalizing the events their own way. Some even compared the mishaps of the production to the _Spiderman_ Musical, others said it was doomed from the start.

The cast and crew had been without pay for two weeks, and they only had three days before opening the show or leaving the theater for good: only a miracle could save them from their predicament. And a miracle was about to walk through the stage door.

* * *

**Thanks again to Original Groffette for being the best beta ever! Did I mention how lucky I am to have her as my beta and as my friend?**

**Hoped you liked it! Leave me a review if you did!**


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